Simplicity
by TheSagaciousKnotch
Summary: People make life complicated, but the key to life is simplicity. Even the most complicated enigma can be stripped to a single truth. Thusly, simplicity is power. [pairings BBRae]
1. Chapter 1

"1…2…3…"

It was an unusually calm day, something peculiar in a location such as Jump City.

"15….16….17…"

It was almost as if a silent truce was announced between the villains that typically scourge the city with their ambitions. Not a robbery or car theft, no commotion from the usual suspects like Plasmus or Cinderblock. Normally they were around just causing miscellaneous havoc, at least, until they were stopped. No, today was an abnormally peaceful day.

"46….47…48…"

One would believe this would be a good thing. One could come to the conclusion that this meant the cities enforcers were doing their jobs, doing their jobs _well_ at that. But…for one green individual…

"72…73….73 tiles."

…this abnormally peaceful day…was abnormally unbearable.

Beast Boy idly lay on his bed in a state of consciousness that could be only described as lethargic.

"There are 73 tiles on my ceiling…great…now I don't have to lie when someone asks," He said to no one. He lay there still, intently staring at his ceiling with a gaze that was mixed with both contempt and desperation. If he were Starfire, there would have been a gaping hole there a long time ago.

"Come on," he shouted desperately to his ceiling, "can't you give me something better to look at!" "You're pitiful you know that, you're good for _nothing_. Here I am, lying in here, putting all my trust and hope into you, and what do you give me? Nothing! That's what! You shame me ceiling," he rolled over, thoroughly disgusted by his ceiling's lack of compassion.

Finally realizing the absurdity of arguing with drywall, he let out a big, defeated sigh.

"Man, where's Slade when you need him," He stated. Then, after a few seconds, he actually heard what he said. "Hmmm, did I just wish for Slade to do _anything_? Whoa, I gotta be more careful, can't let Robin hear me say that. Steel toed boots don't exactly tickle, especially not around the hind quarters."

He rubbed his posterior at the thought of a boot to his bottom, glad it was only him in his room.

"Although, now that I think about it, no one ever comes in here anyways." He rubbed his chin as he contemplated the reason behind this, quickly finding his answer as he surveyed his room.

His room was a modern marvel in itself, for it contained an overwhelming amount of trash that clearly exceeded the normal standard for living, yet, beyond all reason; he was still able to live there! Once asked how he was able to live in such an environment with his heightened sense of smell, he simply gave the response, 'It grows on ya.' Needless to say, his answer did not go un-debated.

His gaze shifted from the month old pizza slice that decorated the left corner of his "room" to the mound of old tofu packaging he affectionately dubbed 'veggie hill'. He then set his eyes upon old uniforms that were molded into place by months of neglect and he couldn't bring himself to look into the corner that held his waste basket. He'd only taken out his trash once, and that's because Raven had threatened him to do so. Apparently air vents and trash dumps don't mix too well. "I really should get to cleanin' this place sometime…" he said to himself, " …meh, ill get to it later," he reasoned as he rolled over on his bed. As he was doing so however, his eyes once again fell upon his accursed ceiling, and instantly, almost as if he'd seen his grandmother naked, turned his head away. It was then the unthinkable happened…

"No time like the present, got nothing better to do." Beast Boy, was about to clean his room…

**In the common room…**

There is no place on Earth even remotely like the common room of Titans Tower. No other place will you find a world-famous boy detective, a runaway alien war princess, a well over 6 foot tall half robotic technological teenage genius, and a… Raven, all in one place. Usually this scene was made ever the queerer by an olive green shape-shifting prank prodigy, but that member was nowhere to be found today. And apparently someone had finally taken notice…

"Where's Beastboy?" Raven eventually queried. She had noticed for quite sometime that the green one wasn't around. The fact that she was able to read a FULL chapter without interruption was the first tip off. She thought of saying something at first, but decided against it, quiet was a luxury she rarely indulged in.

"Hey yea…where is the lil' string bean?" The Metallic Titan asked as he, for the first time this morning, peeled his eyes away from playing the Gamestation, " I haven't whipped him in…," he checked the clock built in his arm, "…7 hours. I'm startin' to go into withdrawal here," The cybernetic teen whined.

"Wow…7 whole hours? How _can_ you manage?" Sarcasm obvious in her voice.

"Built tough I guess," Cyborg shined with undeserved pride, apparently missing the obvious intent of Ravens statement.

"Evidently you needed to be built to recognize sarcasm; one would think you'd have a sensor for that, but then I really should have known better."

Before Cyborg could respond, pointing out that he _does_ have a sarcasm sensor; Starfire felt the urge to express herself, as always.

"I too am troubled by the absence of our friend, what do you think is delaying him?" She asked to no one and everyone at the same time. And, like clockwork, Robin was the first to answer the concerned Tameranian's query.

"I'm sure he's just overslept, _like always_. He must've been up late playing a game or something, _like always_. I should really have a talk with him about his priorities; he spends all his time playing games."

"Hence the brain rot," Raven added.

Everyone seemed to be satisfied by this answer, being the typical order of business for the shape-shifter. Everyone but one that is.

"I am not so sure my friends, never before has friend Beastboy been _this_ tardy to the morning break of fast, why, it is almost the time of afternoon comestibles!"

Any other stander-by would have been completely lost with the syntax of her words, but through years of practice, the rest of the Titans didn't miss a beat.

"Chill Star, I'm sure there's nothin' to worry about," Cyborg offered.

"But-," Starfire attempted

"Starfire," Raven began, showing the early signs of annoyance, "if you're so worried, why don't you just go upstairs and check to see if he's ok?"

"Yes, you are correct friend Raven, I shall embark to find the whereabouts of our friend," she said as she headed toward the door, only to stop dead in her tracks when she realized where she was about to head to… _Beast Boy's room_.

"Ummm, perhaps he is asleep," she feebly began, "it would be…rude, yes, _very_ rude of me to interrupt his slumber." She stated to her friends, nodding fervently to her statement.

"Star, its 11:30, if he's still asleep, he _deserves_ to get woken up." Robin said.

"Oh, that is very true, but, it would…be…very… _improper_ for a girl, such as myself," Raven rolled her eyes at the unesscecary reminder of her 'female-dom', "to enter the living quarters of a male of equal years," she managed, finding a sudden interest in the ceiling.

"Star, I've seen you wash his draws before, don't think you can get any more 'improper' than that," Cyborg pointed out. (Think _Transformation_)

"Or sickening," Raven contributed.

"But…uh…I- there's a…" Starfire rambled, trying to think of another plausible reason for her to stay away from Beastboy's room.

It was then the gears in the boy detective's head started turning, and he did what he learned to do for many years, figuring out a mystery. And right now, Starfire was acting very mysterious.

"You don't want to go into Beastboy's room, do you?" Robin asked with a smirk. His smirk widened as Starfire jumped at being founded out and let out a little 'eep'.

"It- it is not that I do not wish to retrieve our friend, it is just… his domain is too hazardous of an environment for me."

The rest of the Titans were dumbfounded, plain and outright. Cyborg even dropped his controller, although he somehow subconsciously managed to pause the game before he let it loose. It was Raven who voiced the words everyone was thinking.

"You- you're joking, right?"

Starfire looked slightly confused at the accusation and asked, "No, why is it you believe I jest?"

"Starfire, I've seen you fly into outer space in a **miniskirt**, how could you _possibly _be intimidated by a **_room_**!" Raven exclaimed.

"In the confines of space, there is no air for which odors to travel. In our friends room however, there is…no shortage of air."

The rest of the titans all looked at each other, bewildered.

"You mean it's easier for you to enter and return through a planet's atmosphere and gravitational pull, than for you to enter Beastboy's room?" Cyborg stated shakily, obviously trying to get the facts strait. Starfire nodded, slightly ashamed, to her friend. The rest of the Titans looked at each other, this time however, busting out into a fit of laughter, save Raven of course, but even she let a few giggles escape, masking them by clearing her throat.

Slightly embarrassed and chafed by her friend's jeering to her confession, Starfire began to stomp off towards the door.

"Starfire…Hahaha…Star- Hahaha…S- Starfire…wait a sec, Star wait!" Robin shouted for her through a fit of laughter, trying desperately to recover enough to calm her. Leaving a Tameranian flustered was not a good move, for the team, or the well-being of the Tower. He unsteadily made his way from the kitchen to the steps that lead to the common room's door. Upon reaching her, who was standing arms crossed and refusing to look him in the eye, rummaged into his utility belt and pulled out a collapsible gasmask.

"Here Star, I'm sorry for laughing at you. You can use this to go into his room with, it's a gas mask, and it'll protect you from his…air," Robin said, barely able to contain a snicker at his reference to her explanation. Starfire looked at his hand and smacked the device away, sending it flying over the couch. Robin winced at the force of her blow; she forgets how strong she is sometimes.

"I am in no need of your 'mask of gas', I am well able to venture into friend Beastboy's room _without_ your assistance," Starfire forcefully explained, poking a very strong finger squarely in his chest; Robin winced at this too. This was no longer a simple retrieval, this was a matter of pride, and Starfire refused to accept any handouts.

Before Robin could offer any sort of explanation or apologies, Starfire was out of sight, and he had no intention of following her. Getting poked **really **hurt.

"_Nice_," was all Raven said as she returned to her spot on the couch, re-immersing herself into her novel.

(.) ( '.') ('.' )

It was a sight among sights, something only joked about, something written in the book of legends…Beast Boy was actually _cleaning_ his room, **and** he was almost done! He had picked up his old uniforms and put them in a hamper to wash. He put all his old tofu wrappers and that elderly slice of pizza in a trash bag, reorganized his comic book collection, and re-hid all of his books. He even, for the second time in living in this room, had taken out his trash. He also went as far as opening up his window to let out some of his legendary funk. All that was left was vacuuming his floor, and making up his bed.

The vacuum was loud, but the noise went ignored, for Beast Boy had long since he started been listening to his MP3 player, to help pass the time. As if that wasn't enough to distract him, he also felt the need to read while he vacuumed. He was becoming rather engrossed into the story, which, oddly enough, was not in picture form. Beast Boy doesn't always read comic books, although he does enjoy them. Contrary to popular belief, he is quite literate, and actually has a large collection of novels, which he hides under his bed. Currently, he was pretty enthralled into the story of _Lord of the Flies_. It reminded him of back in the day when he used play on the African coast with his parents as a kid, _minus_ the severed pig head of course. He was so enthralled in fact, that he was completely oblivious of how close he was coming to his comforter, which so messily was sprawled out, half on the bed, half on to the floor.

Before he knew it, the vacuum was maliciously trying to eat his favorite green cover. He frantically tried to pull the sheet out of the vacuum's grasp, not once thinking of simply turning the appliance off. Not able to get enough of a grip with one hand, he chucked his book under his bed, after memorizing his page number, and grasped the cloth with both hands. He pulled hard, incredibly hard, as hard as he could manage, but to no avail. Infuriated by the vacuum's defiance, he changed into something with a little bit more fire power, a 450 lbs. African Gorilla. With arms strong enough to toss a pick-up, Beast Boy reached for the comforter, ready to make quick work of its retrieval, at least, that was until suddenly…

(o.o) (o.o) ( . )

Starfire stomped off the elevator and onto the 3rd Floor, creating small tremors that did not go unnoticed by the others in the common room, and determinedly headed towards Beast Boys room. Throughout her approach to his quarters, words that were clearly not English could be heard, words that clearly could be distinguished as _'unlady-like'_. But, her alien rant was halted when she heard a weird noise. She continued to walk towards Beast Boy's door and the noise was getting louder and louder. She was just around the corner of the hallway that leads to his room when it hit her. She knew what that noise was! That horrible, detestable noise was all too familiar to her, it was not the first time she had crossed path's with a… "Scordolian Xinglard," she said menacingly as she recognized that horrible sound. There were many tales of its war cry; many were not spoken to again when encountered with such a noise. She had been skilled enough to defeat more than one, but it did not mean it was easy, she was very wary of them. She did not expect to hear such a sound on Earth, that _'Whiiir…fvvvvvhhh'_ sound. Perhaps one of the many enemies to the crown had found her location and sent one to vanquish her. If they think she will cower in the face of such a creature, they were _sorely_ mistaken.

Her pace and her pulse quickened as she rounded the corner, ready to battle the horrible brute. It was then she realized that the noise was coming from none other than Beast boy's room! She rushed the rest of the way to the front of his door and tried to open it, only to find that it was locked. Worried for her friends safety and anxious to rid the creature from the world of the living, she did all she could think to do in such a desperate situation. She charged her hands up with brilliantly green orbs and shouted, "Friend Beast Boy! Stand strong and do not fret! I am here!" Then, with extreme prejudice, she blew the door clean of the hinges.

(o.o) (x.x) ( -.-) 

Beast Boy didn't know what just happened. But he did know that this kind of thing always seems to happen to him, _always_. He was just minding his business, trying to retrieve his cover from the clenches of the vacuum cleaner. He didn't know Starfire was on her way to his room, he didn't know that she would mistaken the noise of his cover being sucked into the vacuum cleaner as a war cry from a savage alien monster. But what he did know is flying doors are not very soft. Not soft at all.

"Friend Beast Boy! Friend Beast Boy where is the foul creature?"

Starfire didn't know what she just did. She didn't know that the sound was coming from a very harmless vacuum. She didn't know that there were no Scordolian Xinglard sightings every recorded on Earth. Ever. And, most importantly, Starfire didn't know she had just pinned an African Gorilla on the wall with his very own door, his very _hard_, metallic, door.

With a grunt Beast Boy pushed his door off of him and onto the ground; silently thanking he had just seconds before transformed into a gorilla. Otherwise, every bone is his body would have most likely been broken.

"That's one heck of a knock you have there Star," Beast Boy said rubbing his head as he turned back into his human form.

"I will apologize later friend, we have more pressing matters at hand," Starfire explained.

"Like?"

"'Like!' Did you not hear it?"

"Hear what?"

"The War Cry! You cannot say you have not heard it!"

"Uhhh… 'I have not heard it?'"

"THE XINGLARD…we must defeat the Xinglard!"

Although having absolutely no idea what a Xinglard is or what one sounds like, Beast Boy decided to play along. Angry Tameranians aren't as fun-loving as happy Tameranians.

"Uh, I don't hear a 'Xinglard' _now_, do you?"

Finally taken notice that the sound had stopped, due to the fact the blasted door had pulled the vacuum cord from its outlet, Starfire became puzzled.

"Friend, I am certain I heard the terrible war cry of a Scordolian Xinglard, most certain!"

"Well, I don't hear one now, so, is there anything else you need, cause I was in the midd-,"

"O yes friend!" Starfire interrupted, suddenly remembering why she'd came, "The initial cause for my visitation is to discern the reason for your absence this morning. You missed the break of fast and are about to miss this afternoon's time of comestibles."

"Did I really? Wow, sorry Star, I was just caught up."

"But you do not seem to be caught on anything friend."

"No Star, I meant I was busy."

"Oh. Busy doing what, might I ask?"

"Well, just before you K.O.ed my door, I was in the middle o-,"

"What's wrong! I just heard an explosion and…" Robin asked, rushing into the room after hearing the living daylights being knocked out of Beast Boy's door.

"Nothings wrong Rob, Star just thought I was being attacked by…something…"

"… A Scordolian Xinglard," Starfire clarified.

"Yea, that, anyhow, she thought I was in trouble and…Rob…Rob you listening?"

Robin was frozen at the entrance of Beast Boy's room, mouth agape. It was almost like he'd seen a ghost.

"Friend Robin what is the-," Starfire began.

"Raven get up here STAT!" Robin ordered through the communicator.

"What are you do-," Beast Boy inquired, only to get cut off by a certain empath emerging through the floor.

"What?" Raven harshly asked, clearly annoyed about being torn away from her book. "What could possibly be going in Beast Boy's room that needs my attention?"

"Look for yourself," Robin said, clearly still baffled.

Still perturbed, she did what she was told. Upon once-overing the green boy's room, all of Raven's agitation took a back seat to her utter surprise. She directed her attention to Beast Boy and said, or at least attempted to, "Di-Did you…_clean_ your room?"

Slightly offended at everyone's surprise, Beast Boy said, "Yeah I did. Geez! What's the big deal! It's not like-," Beast Boy began to say, only to get interrupted yet again, for the second time by Robin.

"Raven, check him," was all the Boy Wonder said.

Immediately understanding, Raven closed her eyes and began to focus.

"What are you doing?" Beast Boy asked, but, not a second after the words passed through his lips did he know what was going on. It was like ice water was being dumped down his back. He could feel the beginnings of someone probing through his head, his mind and his memories. It didn't feel right, and it was extremely unnerving, he hated it, and he felt like he could hate who was doing it to him. And Beast Boy, for the first time in a long while, got angry.

He gathered all his thoughts back, feeling completely just and didn't for a second think he couldn't do what he was about to do. And then he did what no one was able to do before; he expelled Raven from his mind, he nullified her ability to run through his head. In short, he pushed Raven away, right out of his mind. Almost as if someone had pushed her, Raven fell back, clear on her rump.

"Don't **EVER** do that again!" Beast Boy shouted, clearly angry at what his friends thought they had the right to do.

Raven, too shocked to have been denied access, was speechless, as was everyone else. But for her, what Beast Boy had just done didn't make any sense. How was he, a simple minded buffoon, able to push her away, with her lifetime of practice?

"Beast Boy, we're sorry, but it just isn't like you to clean your room or to miss a meal, we thought something was wrong." Robin explained.

"Something wrong with _me_?" Beast Boy asked, sounding a little darker than usual.

"Yes, we thought something was wrong," Robin tried to reassure.

"No, _you_ thought something was wrong, Robin."

"Beast Boy-,"

"Look," he interrupted, "It doesn't matter if something _was_ wrong or not, you had no right to invade my privacy like that."

"But-,"

"Especially for some dumb reason like cleaning my room, am I not _allowed_ to clean it or something!"

"Friend, Robin was just con-," Starfire tried.

"No Star, I was just trying to be nice. I cleaned my room because I realized no one likes to come in here because it's usually a mess. I cleaned it for you guys!"

"Beast Boy, I'm sorry." Raven surprisingly said.

This got to Beast Boy. Raven hardly ever said sorry to anyone, especially him, and she'd thrown him out of _windows_ on a number of occasions. He decided perhaps he was overreacting; all she was trying to do was to make sure it was really him; she was doing what Robin had told her. It was even a bit funny.

"I guess we all overacted a little bit," Beast Boy said, subduing his anger. "Heck, I'd check me too if someone like me cleaned his room."

"Yeah, maybe next time I should just try asking, I can be a little suspicious sometimes." Robin said.

"Oh yeah, only _sometimes_," Raven cracked, earning a glare from Robin.

"Ok, now that we all know that I'm me, can I finish cleaning my room ?"

"Yeah, sure Beast Boy, I'll send Cyborg up here to fix your door." Starfire blushed at her handiwork.

"Thanks."

At that, everyone began to file out of the room. Beast Boy walked over to the vacuum cleaner and plugged it back into the socket, forgetting in all the madness that his bed sheet was still caught in it. And then, he turned it on...and Starfire wasn't quite out the room yet…

"XINGLARD!" she shouted as she turned around and shot a starbolt in the direction of the 'war cry', landing solidly on the vacuum, sending dust and all sorts of refuse exploding all around the room.

"Oh," began Beast Boy, "So _that's_ what a Xinglard sounds like..."

(o.o) (n.n) (o-o)

**In the common room…**

Cyborg rounded the corner, it was the last lap of the final race of the grand prix. He was in second place and a hair behind the 1st place racer, 100ft from the finish line. The crowd was silent and time seemed to cease as the race looked to be coming to a close. But, Cyborg was not to be outshined. Using his opponents slip stream, Cyborg punch the accelerator and blasted into 1st place to take the checkered flag .004 seconds from the second placer.

"BOOYAH!" Cyborg shouted as he punched his fist in the air. Truly this was the finest win in Gamestation history. And he looked to see who had witnessed his glory.

"Hey," the lone Cyborg said, "where'd everybody go?"


	2. Chapter 2

Howdy-doo yall! It's your favorite manic back with Chapter two! It's only half the chapter chapter one is ( don't tell it I said that...it'll be crushed) but I dont think I have the stamina to shell out 4,000 plus words every time. Cut me some slack, I'm new here remember? WEll, now that that's out in the open, let me get on with the reviews!

**_Taliesin sage: _**Thanks partner! I really like typing starfire...she's a blast. Funny thing though, I was a little worried I wouldn't be able to succesfully type her manner of speaking. Glad to know I'm better than I already thought I was! Oh, and I totally agree about the whole focred confessions thing. All I can say is that it had to be done for the sake of story progression. Plus, Beast Boy's just that kind of 'forgive and forget' type of guy, ya know? But...everyone has their limits...hehe...you'll see.And don't worry, later conflicts won't have such picturesque resolutions.

**_Veela Chic: _**Im glad you thought it was funny, but I'm even happier you thought it was well written. Thanks! And Xinglard is my now favorite made up word! I call my bro that any time he peeves me off and he's all like: "!"

**_Darth Cruel: _**I know I already emailed you, but I didn't want you to feel neglected...so...Thanks for the compliments. Oui! My head is starting to get too big:s

_**Break4angles: **_I'm glad you thought my little diddy is interesting and I am estatic your looking out for it. I am truly unworthy (bows). Oh, and you can rest easy my friend. Through further deliberation, I have finally decided that, yes, this will be a BBRae romance story, how romantic is undecided, but there will be some! Like KFC...'I Garuntee It!' But don't expect it to be all perfect from the beginning...'The most fine of diamonds take the longest to craft'.(My Quote...all me...yeaaaaa boy! n.n)

**Disclaimer: **If I did own the Teen Titans there'd still be a season six.

P.S...I consumed an ungodly amount of Lays brand Wavy Potato Chips in the making of this chapter.

P.P.S...I do not own Lays brand Wavy Potato Chips either...duh.

On with the Show!

* * *

Raven was perplexed. _How could it be possible? I've peered into the psyches of the worlds greatest criminal masterminds. Even when I was younger, I was able to look into anyone's head at anytime I felt necessary. Never in my whole life have I ever had any trouble, especially not complete and total rejection. It's like reading a book, a children's book at that. So why, why had I been rejected yesterday, and by Beast Boy of all people! The boy's IQ rivals that of a bar of soap, I should have been able to read his mind in my sleep. It just doesn't make any sense._

Raven lay there stewing on the couch, pretending to read one of her many books. Had anyone actually noticed, they would have seen that she hadn't turned a page in 30 minutes.

_How did he do it? Maybe he didn't do anything at all; maybe something's wrong with **me**. That must be it, something must be wrong, I'd better go chec-_

"Hey Rae." Said a voice that she didn't particularly want to hear right now.

"Hello Beast Boy."

"Look, Rae, I just wanted to apologize for my little outburst yesterday," _even though I didn't do anything wrong, _he thought, "and-,"

"Not now Beast Boy, I've got something I need to do, something important."

"Anything I can do to help?" He inquired. He was trying his best to gain her favor again; she wasn't someone you'd want to have stay mad at you. Usually bodily harm is involved if that's the case.

"Yes," she began, "you can not get in my way."

"But-," he tried.

"…**_Not_** get in my way, **_not._**" she warned.

"Raven," he began cautiously, he was skating on thin ice, "I'm sure there's _something_ I can do to help."

"No Beast Boy, there's not. You need the ability to read for what I'm about to do. A skill you seem to be lacking." Raven harshly said.

"You really think I can't read, huh." Beast Boy said with a strange inflection; a combination of hurt and anger, mixed with something else, something unknown.

Raven turned around at this and looked into his eyes, his glorious emerald eyes. She wasn't able to decipher the hidden meaning behind his words, something was amiss, and she didn't know what it was this time. Usually Beast Boy was easy to read, he always held his emotions on his sleeve, and Raven had always been envious of that. But now, there was something there that wasn't for her to see, some secret treasure of his mind.

_This isn't right; this isn't…'Beast Boy'._

"Do you, or don't you?" He asked, frustrated by her pause in dialogue.

Brought back to reality by his words, Raven gathered a response.

"I do think you can read, just not _well_."

"How would you know?" He asked a little indignant.

"For one thing, all I ever see you dip into are _comic books_, and no, I don't think word bubbles count as _reading_."

"Have you ever _asked_ me if I can read well?"

Raven tried to respond, she really did, but no words would come. It was almost as if someone had stolen the air from her lungs. It was such a simple question, yet, she couldn't answer. It should have been easy, a simple 'yes' or 'no'. But it felt to her that if she had said 'yes' she would have been lying, if she had said 'no'…for some reason…she felt she would be losing. It didn't make any sense, how such a simple thing could vex her so, so she did the only thing she could think of. She did what she always did when faced with something she couldn't confront. She ran.

"I don't have time for this…" she said as she turned around from facing Beast Boy and began to head for the stairs. She would have, that is, if a certain green teammate of hers hadn't grabbed her arm, effectively keeping her in place.

"Then make time…answer my question," he said surprisingly seriously.

This was too much. This was way too much for Raven: First the cleaning, then the mind block, then the question, and now, Beast Boy…acting so unlike himself. She was frustrated, she was confused, and… she was being touched…by Beast Boy. It was time for action.

"**Don't touch me!" **She yelled.

With that she summoned a portion of her powers and enveloped his body with her obsidian colored energy.

"Rav-mmm," He muffled, being utterly silenced by a small sliver of her powers, fitting very snuggly over his lips.

As if immobilizing him wasn't enough, she felt the need to plaster him against the wall, a wall that so happens to be the ceiling. She knew she was being a lot more than cruel, but she needed an outlet for her frustration, and Beast Boy was practically volunteering.

"I'll be upstairs." With that she about-faced and promenaded her way to the elevator, as if she had done nothing at all. All while poor Beast Boy was able to get a very good idea of how badly the furniture needed to be dusted.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

**In Raven's Room (_tread with caution_)…**

Raven felt bad. She felt bad as she walked towards the elevator. She felt bad as she walked _into_ the elevator. She felt bad as she got off the elevator and walked into her room. She felt bad for how she invaded Beast Boy's mind and privacy the other day, and she felt bad for what she had just done to him. Raven felt bad, and she felt worse because she knew it was no body else's fault but hers.

_I didn't need to do that. He was just apologizing, and for something that wasn't even his fault. Why does he do things like that, I hate it. Why apologize for something you didn't do, it makes no sense, stupid grass stain. Although, nothing with him nowadays makes sense, not the cleaning his room, not the mind block, not the change in character, not the apology, nothing! What's with him! What's with me! This isn't how things are supposed to be. This isn't how I **want** things to be. So it's up to me to find out the problem and correct it…_

With that she made her way over to her bookshelf and perused her colossal collection of tomes in search of the solution to her 'problem'. She sporadically tossed books onto the floor as her search deepened. **The Book** **of Azar**: _No. _**The Forbidden Tome of Hiddekel**: _No. _**The Book of Enchantresses**: _No. _**Red Moon Augury**: _No. _**The Idiot's Guide to Not Being an Idiot**: _Oh, I must have forgotten to give this to Beast Boy. _**Animorph #13**: _Huh? What the heck is this doing in my room? _She set the book aside on her night stand for further inspection later on and resumed her hunt. _No, No, No, No, No, No…**NO!**_ _There's nothing here that can help me at all! This is so pointless. _Frustrated that her efforts have so far gone on un-rewarded, and also the fact that she just wasted 15 minutes for nothing, Raven decided to take another course of action.

_Maybe meditation will help me get an idea of what I need to do._

With that thought in mind, she walked over to her bed and brought her legs up to assume the very familiar lotus position. Just before she was about to delve deep inside herself, a lingering thought entered her mind. _Beast Boy! _She hastily snapped her head to the direction of her clock. To her horror it read _2:37_. She had plastered him to the wall at **_2:15_**. Feeling a slight pang of guilt, she finally let her hold on Beast Boy loose. Although, the predicted scream ensuing his plummet was oddly satisfying. But, to hear that the scream was, in fact, a **duet** was _thoroughly_ satisfying.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

Five minutes. That's how long it's been. Five minutes of staring at the tops of furniture. Five minutes of doing nothing but staring, staring and thinking. One would think the green titan would be furious, that he would be struggling to break free of his bonds, or at least plotting his revenge when the ordeal is through. One would have good reason to think these things, but oddly enough this wasn't the case. The usually energetic, expressive one on the team was anything but that. There was no struggling, no muffled sounds, nothing. It was almost as if he didn't mind being bound, no, it is almost as if he had come to accept it. So he hung there, eyes half closed and glazed over, deep in thought.

_Why is it I always do something wrong…even when I don't do anything wrong? I clean my room…and I get my mind violated…and…I get slammed with a door. I try to apologize for yelling, to the **person **who invaded **my mind**, and I get glued to the ceiling. Why is it anything I do goes sour? _

A light bulb went off in Beast Boy's head.

_Wait a second; I'm not the one to blame here… **Raven** is. All I ever do is be nice to her, try to make her laugh, try to make her join her friends; try to make her…make her **feel** better. But all I ever get in return is hurt; plowed against walls, thrown out of windows, and most recently, glued to ceilings. Why does she have to do those things, why can't she return my kindness? She doesn't deserve my kindness if that's the way she's going to treat it. If she wants to be left alone, from now on, I'll just leave her alone to rot. If she doesn't think my joke is funny, who cares, it doesn't matter to me. I'm not taking this anymore, I don't deserve it, and I won't have it happen any longer. Things are going to change…drastically._

Time flew by as Beast Boy continued to contemplate with vigor his new resolution. Why, before he knew it, the clock already read…2:36…

'_shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh'_

Beast Boy's train of that was broken by the sound of the automatic sliding door in the common room.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

If it could, the punching bag would undoubtedly cry. The Boy Wonder was going to town on the sand bag in the training room. Crime was down in the city but Robin had to stay in top condition, he couldn't let a dry spell cause him to drop his guard. Although he'd never admit it, he had a hard time trying to keep up with his team. All the others were born or received abilities that gave them a permanent upper hand over the enemy. They were special, and he wasn't, that meant he had to train especially hard, just to not fall behind. Sure he would help train them, he'd make regimens and obstacle courses and other programs, and he'd participate too, but, none of them knew just how much he trained without them. How hard he tried to perfect every technique, to hone his reflexes, to sharpen his split-second judgment. He was normal, most of his enemies weren't, so he'd have to become abnormally great at everything he did, it's the only way.

"Whooahh!" With one final punch, much to the sand bag's delight, Robin picked up his towel, and patted his forehead of sweat as he made his way out of the door. Over and over again he replayed his performance in his head, taking notice of his shortcomings and his strong points, all while walking down the corridor to the common room. He was really thirsty after his work out and he needed a big glass of ice water. Coming close to his destination, he pulled out his communicator and checked the time…_2:36. _Reaching the door, he put the device back into his utility belt and made his way through the entrance, and into the kitchen. He licked his lips as the water filled the cup and was very much looking forward to downing the glass. Ready to relax, he made his way over to the couch. That's when he heard a small muffled noise; he looked to his left and to his right, not finding anything. He turned around to look behind him but found nothing but the clock that hung above the common room door. A clock that clearly read 2:37…

"**DUUUUUUDDDDDEEEE!"**

He quickly turned his head upward, only to see a gangly green teenager falling directly towards him.

"**Holy Crap**!" Was all Robin could think to say, just before having the world's only animal shape-shifter collide into him, spilling his beloved water everywhere on the two, except of course, in Robin's parched mouth.

"Oh….Ooh…," Beast Boy moaned as he rubbed his head, only afterwards seeing where exactly he had landed." "Heh Heh…, did anyone tell you your lap is exceptionally soft?" Beast Boy said… trying to diffuse the Boy Wonder's temper before it flared up. It didn't work.

"WHAT THE-," Robin began, only to be cut off by the sliding of the automated door.

"What's going on! I heard screaming and a loud thump so I-," Cyborg started, only to be cut off by the image that lay in front of him.

Beast Boy was firmly lying on top of Robin, his pelvis dangerously close to Robin's rear end. And, as if that wasn't enough, both of them seemed to be drenched it what appeared to be sweat. **Two boys**…**lying on top of one** **another**… **drenched in sweat**….

Cyborg looked at them. They looked at Cyborg. No one said a thing. A bird could be heard chirping in the distance. The calm sound of waves crashing onto the ocean shore and the horn of a tug boat blaring caressed the afternoon air. And then…Cyborg let a tear fall from his eyes and it rolled down his cheek.

"There…there _is_ a god…" Cyborg said with a weak trembling voice as he raised his finger and touched a button that was placed on the mechanical side of his face, where his ear should be.

A bright flash flooded the room as Cyborg, with his red mechanical eye, took a very clear, very high definition picture of two _very_ angry teenage boys in a **_very_** awkward position.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

Starfire was looking into her vanity mirror brushing her flowing locks, as she does every day. She hummed a sugary sweet tune that could sooth even the most vicious of beasts as she counted the strokes.

"87, 88, 89…"

"**CYYYYYYBOOOORRRRGGG!"**

Starfire dropped her brush and lost count.

Flustered, but still determined to accomplish her ritualistic activity, she picked up her brush and started again…

"1, 2, 3…"


	3. Chapter 3

Howdoo peeps! Sorry I've been away for a little, had some importante 'bidness to handle. Business that so happens to include watching "Things Change". Uhh...best episode ever anyone? I know there are some mixed reactions about it, but to me, it was absolutly brilliant. Totally Different than anyother TT ep. Totally Different, and Totallt Wonderful. It's episodes like this that makes me sad to see it go. Although with all the hubbub behind this ep, it gives me hope that they'll bring it back for another season. Here's wishing. Now...on to the reviews...

**Mage kitty: **Your review made me feel so good, I just **had** to type another chappie. Please...keep it comming, its my crack!

**Break4Angles: **I know i didn't have to bow...but i did anyways, cause your beautiful! And you just listed some of my favorite things in the chappie.

**Silverchild of the Winds: **Yes, the animorphs book is a little babyish for Raven's tastes, but, ill explain how it got there. And, believe it or not, it actually plays an integral role later on in the story.

**nonengel: **Thanks, I'm glad you think it's funny so far, and i'm really glad you picked up on the more serious bits . Please believe it's all about to start comming down in a big way. So watch out...and bring an umbrella or something...

**VeelaChic: **Chhhhaaaaaaa DUDE! I'm...like...totally **STOKED** your digging my vibe so far. Righteous! And...like...I thought that line was totally awesome **TOO! DUDE!**

**The Mad Shoe1: **I thank you...from the very bottom...the deepest corners...the darkest abyss...every part of my heart. Well, maybe not **that** much, but it _was_ a nice thing to say! Cheers!

**Taliesin Sage: **Glad you liked it, but don't expect some as cliche' as a Beast moment...at least not like that. Beast Boy would never get THAT sour towards Raven. Although that's not to say things don't get bumpy for them. And about the animorphs book...all will be revealed in due time.

**Morning: **You Know I Luvs 'Ya!

**Darth Cruel: **Yeah..i noticed that about alot of fics...it's NEVER Rae's fault. I mean Come'on! Noone's never at fault.And don't sweat it..the update has NOw arrived!

**P.S:** This Chapter is a branch off of chapter 2...so it's a little bit silly and not very important towards the progression of the story. But it's not COMPLETLY pointless. Expect things to really pick up in chapter 4. HEHE...it'll be a dusie!

Enjoy!

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Cyborg sniffed hard into the aroma of a promising day.

"Ahhhh, what a day to be alive!"

With that he removed the plug from the middle of his chest and leapt of his bed, which was nothing more than a long, swiveling, sturdy sheet of metal. Cyborg was especially ebullient, at least, more so than he normally is. It was evident in the way he went about stretching to jump-start his day. Cyborg always thought it was pretty ironic how he still had to stretch, even though he didn't have any genuine muscles to stretch with. Really, it wasn't even necessary. He had just found it easier for him to go through the beginnings of his day if he did it anyway. The stretch motions actually warm up the servos and circuits that serve as his muscle now, kind of like turning on a computer and letting it run for a little bit before you use it. Not to mention, of course, that this little ritual of his is just another wisp of nostalgia that reminds him that he's human.

After finishing his routine, Cyborg looked around his room with a smile. His eyes passed over his computer, his recharge station and his metallic floor, and finally resting on his full-body mirror (_Think_**_Deception_**). His smile fell to the floor.

_Why do I even keep one in my room? It's not like I can exactly change into something"prettier"._ _I should probably take that out sometime._

In his years of living with his prosthetics, Cyborg had learned that dwelling on one's infirmities will not make them go away. Remembering this, and not being a person to let things keep him down, he bucked up and headed towards his door. Remembering the day's agenda Cyborg's face lit up, and a mischievous grin plastered itself onto his features.

"Today is _definitely_ going to be a good day to be alive."

And he exited out his door.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

"And that is why the Flypinos Hyspoxies of my home planet are a delicacy of the richest tastes." Starfire explained.

"Tantalizing." Raven replies in her usually stoic manner.

Raven had been trying her best to entertain the exuberant member of the team, enduring all types of chatter; things ranging from toe-nail painting to the mating patterns of beavers. You never know what would come out of the girl's mouth, and frankly, Raven was beginning to lose the fight of trying to actually listen. Listen _and_ participate, it was starting to be too much for her. She wondered how Robin could handle her toddler-like energy, accompanied with her otherworldly customs.

_He can't be human. _Raven found an error in her thinking._ Wait…**I'm** not fully human. He must be something else, something worse. Something cooked up from a madman's imagination._

"…Raven…Raven?" Starfire inquired.

"Huh…? What is it Starfire?" Raven asked, startled out of her thoughts.

"I was questioning you if you were aware of the wonderful process in which the candied corn is manufactured. It is most wondrous! Especially the method they use to put those majestic stripes onto the individual pieces!" Starfire excitedly repeated.

Raven inwardly sighed; silently wishing the Boy Wonder would make an appearance and save her. The doors coincidently swooshed open, causing Raven to think wishes actually come true, only to have her hope shattered as she saw it wasn't her savior, but Cyborg walking through the doors. Despite her disappointment however, she did notice the unusually snide smirk on his face. Ironically, not one to like being kept in the dark; she decided to investigate the source of it.

"Slept well did you?" Raven questioned.

"You can say that." Cyborg smugly said as he took his seat on the couch, facing the TV screen.

"I thought **I** was the only one on the team allowed to answer cryptically."

Cyborg's smirk just got wider at the response and, before being further questioned, one very pissed off bird barreled through the doors, face matching the color of his shirt.

"**WHO….DID….THIS…!" **Robin said clearly and slowly, visibly fighting the urge to plunge a bird-a-rang into the neck of everyone in the room.

Recovering from the initial surprise of having someone barge into a room yelling, Raven finally took notice of what the enraged hero was referring to. And Raven's eyes bulged. On the black outer ridge of Robin's infamous mask, were randomly drawn pink bat symbols with red hearts amorously drawn in the center of every…single… one. Raven had to turn her head, lest her bubbling laughter surface. And her diverted eyes fell upon Cyborg, who hadn't even turned around. Suddenly, she realized exactly why he slept so well.

"Robin, your mask is Glorious! I did not know you harbored such affection for the Fellow Hero Batman!"

Cyborg lost it, he just couldn't hold on any longer. He laughed a hearty laugh, one that echoed all throughout the tower. Raven concentrated, she couldn't let them make her crack. She couldn't laugh.

"**YOU!" **Robin said with more venom than a cobra, and treacherously advanced towards the metal man.

Raven knew Cyborg was smart. Raven knew that an angry Robin is not a Robin you want to be around, especially not being the source of his anger. Raven _thought _Cyborg was smart, but he was proving her wrong. He wasn't running away, and _that _was a very **stupid** move.

He just stood there, watching his demise quickly approach, his pink, heart-filled demise. But the oddest thing was that he was _smiling_. Robin withdrew his bo-staff from his utility belt and swung back, ready to teach his 'friend' a lesson. Cyborg brought his arm up, for what Raven thought was to block the incoming blow. But no. He raised his arm up and just tapped his temple; A temple that rested right next to his red, metallic eye.

And Robin froze in place. Hands and Bo-staff far above his cranium, nervous sweat pouring off of his forehead. He looked like a living snapshot of himself.

"You…you wouldn't…" Robin weakly said, trying to call him on his bluff.

"Oh no?" Cyborg challenged as he calmly strolled over to a very puzzled Starfire. Not to say that Raven was any less confused. Robin, however, sweated more and more with each ridiculing step.

"Starfire, I have _the_ most captivating picture of Robin that I don't think I've shown you yet, would you like to see?" Cyborg nonchalantly asked of her, well aware of who was listening.

"Oh yes Friend! Please, do show me!"

"**NO!**" Robin interjected, as Cyborg thought he would.

"Robin?" Starfire questioned.

"Starfire, you **can't** see that picture!"

"You do not wish for me to see a photograph of you?" Starfire said a little hurt, like a kitten.

"No..i-it's just..I…you see…uh…" Robin stammered.

Cyborg's grin couldn't be measured. He thoroughly enjoyed watching Robin squirm, especially when his on devices are the reason for it. Raven had to admit too, she was enjoyed it just as much; she just hid it a lot better. But, she was beginning to lose that ability.

"You do not trust me to see this photograph?"

"No…NO! I trust you with my life Star..it's just…"

"Or is it because you do not think of me as a friend?"

"Starfire I-,"

"**WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"**

Surprisingly, a blood curdling scream came as a **relief** to the Boy Wonder, who was very quickly getting backed into a corner.

"What wa-," Starfire started, quickly getting an answer to her unfinished question as the automated doors slid open, revealing an extremely angry shape-shifter.

"**WHO…DID…THIS?" **Beast Boy demanded of everyone present.

"Who did what?" Raven asked, looking over to a still very smug Cyborg.

_Uh oh…_Raven thought.

"**THIS!**" He exclaimed as he thrust out his fist in the air, holding a strip of bacon.

"Um, stop me if I'm wrong, but I think you have TYSON to blame for that." Raven explained.

"Oh really…does TYSON package they're bacon with **TAPE ON EACH STRIP**!" Beast Boy rebuttaled sarcastically, now holding the strip by two fingers, allowing everyone to see what exactly he was so mad about. On one end of the meat slice was a piece of duct tape with what appeared to be a lock of green hair caught on the adhesive side. And on the other end of the strip, there appeared to be…a bite mark.

"**WHO TAPED BACON TO MY FOREHEAD LAST NIGHT!**"

Cyborg bust out laughing, collapsing on the couch from the severity of it.

"**YOU!**" Beast Boy exclaimed, instantly changing into a gorilla as he made his way over to the culprit behind his ingestion of meat.

Raven knew Cyborg was smart. Raven knew Beast Boy was dumb. But Raven also knew that, when mad, Beast Boy turned into a whole other person. A violent person. She hoped Cyborg had a way out of this one too, like he did for Robin. She wasn't disappointed.

Just as the green ape reared his fist back to clock Cyborg in the head, Cyborg, calmly tapped his temple once more. The green gorilla stopped in place, reverting back to his human form which didn't look half as threatening in the same pose.

"I-Is…that?" Beast unsteadily asked.

"Mmmmhmmmm." Was all Cyborg said.

And then all was quiet. At least until Cyborg decided to make his victory all the more sweet.

"Well boys, all this fun sure has made me hungry. Why don't you two fix me up some grub."

It was at this point that Raven's opinion of Cyborg greatly improved.

The two defeated boy's walked over to the fridge, pulling out all sorts of meat, much to Beast Boy's chagrin. Robin walked over to the counter to prepare it for cooking and Beast Boy got the pan and put it on the stove. As Beast Boy turned on the flames, he took notice of Robin's fashion statement.

"Nice mask," Beast Boy said.

Robin then threw a piece of bacon squarely into Beast Boy's face.

"THE MEAT…IT BURNS!"


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

HowDAY readers! I know I'm back kinda soon, but this chapter pretty much wrote itself. It just poured out of me, like...a bleeding ulcer! Ok..so not the prettiest anolgy, but it serves its purpose. Anywho...im thoroughly content with the way this turned out, and i hope the folks who read this enjoy it too. I told you this one would be a dusie...so lets hope i delivered. If not, then just wait till chapter 5...thats a SUPER dusie! Now...on with the Reviews!

* * *

**Break4Angels: **My most faithful of reviewers...I truly appreciate your constant review-y-ness-ness. Im sorry for you unfortuante circumstances, what with the grounding and everythin, but it fills my heart with joy that you went out of your way to read my pathetic lil diddy. I thankyou, and dedicate this chapter por vu. 

**Beatiful Purple Flame (nice name):** Thanks, and, soon enough for ya?

**Abaddon of Reown: You got all my best characteristics in one pertinent sentence...AMAZING! This chapter may not be as hilarious, but I do hope you still like it.**

**Mage Kitty: **Once again your reviews make me higher than LSD. I thankyou, i try to keep characters themselves in my stories, even if i tweak them a little to fit my purposes, cause, you know, I'm God (at least in my story i am).

**Silverchild of the Winds: **Glad you thought it was funny, and as I mentioned in the Review section of said chapter, it had no bearing on the progression of the story. And about the animorph book, no all the titans dont have one, but expect a full explanation in chapter 5. Which, may I add, will be a SUPER dusie!

**Raven 619: **Glad you like the way I type up Star, she's my guilty pleasure...when it comes to typing that is :s. Don't worry thogh, things start gettin serious in this chapter, and it's only going to get more serious, count on it. Glad im on your alerts and I didn't actually have a particular book i was trying to use for the Animorph's book number...I just needes the book number. But, I think i can actually use 'The Change' for my own sick demented purposes. Oh, and by the way, I found your alliteration EXTREMELY sexy!

Enough outta silly ol' me...ENJOY!

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Block. Right thrust. Twirl to vertical block. Spin to left thrust to right sided back-stab to twirl to horizontal block.__

Beast Boy was angry. Just this morning, he discovered he had eaten meat. Beast Boy was a vegetarian. Vegetarians don't eat meat.

_Half-circle arc to the floor to thrust. Spin body and follow through. Block to vault to leap kick._

Cyborg knew vegetarians don't eat meat. Cyborg knew Beast Boy was a vegetarian. Beast Boy doesn't eat meat. It's that simple.

_Parry to half-twirl to blunt end club to spin to reverse- side low sweep._

_Then what would make him do that? Why would Cyborg knowingly scheme for me to ingest meat? Did he think that it was a **joke**; my not eating meat? Did he think I only do it just for the **sake** of saying I don't eat meat?_

_Stab. Stab. Stab._

_Did he think just because I joked it off, just because I didn't make a scene, that I **don't** care? Doesn't he respect me at **all**? Doesn't he care about **my** feelings?_

_**Stab. Stab. Stab.**_

_**Does everyone here think of me as a joke! **_

_**STAB. STAB. **Shatter…_

Beast Boy panted hard as he stared into his broken image in what remained of the mirror in the training room. He had been venting his anger and frustration in his typical, secretive way. Whenever he was upset, whenever he was bored and alone, whenever he was angry, he would come to the training room and practice his African Bo Katas. The others of course had no idea of this ritual of his, the others also didn't know of his roots in Africa. It was a skill passed onto him by the leader of the tribe he and his family were friends with.

He was a great and strong man, a valiant African warrior, and Beast Boy looked up to him, although of course, not as much as he looked up to his father. He had told Beast Boy that if he were to befriend his tribe, he would befriend his tribe's traditions. Among those traditions were that all boys of 5 and older were to take up the tribe's traditional style of Bo. Beast Boy, or Garfield, was 6 at the time. Eager and full energy, he took quickly to the Bo, and quickly was excelling in it. This made him cocky, and he challenged a boy twice his age to a sparring match. He was defeated, almost embarrassingly, and became disheartened. It was then the tribe leader took him to the side and said to him…

"A warrior does not attack without fully knowing his situation. A warrior must know himself before he knows his enemies. A sense of self is a warrior's greatest tool, for when a warrior knows his limits, he can then surpass them. Know yourself, then know the world, and life will come easier to you," Beast Boy recited from memory.

Fondly remembering his past had calmed him down. Taking in his recollection, Beast Boy began to think more clearly.

_It was just a joke, a pretty good one at that. Cyborg doesn't know the real reason I don't eat meat, so I can't expect him to fully understand my point of view, not to say that he still shouldn't respect it. At any rate, breaking mirrors won't make anything better. I should just probably talk to him about it, and while I'm at it, come up with an excuse for breaking this mirror._

At this moment, Beast Boy's sensitive ears twitched, picking up a noise that was approaching him…and fast. He tried to filter out the noises to identify them.

_Sounds like…metal shoes…and… … rippling fabric… well that doesn't help much. That could be any two of the four._

Having his ears fail him, Beast Boy relied on his acute nose to narrow the choices.

_Smells like…lavender…and….motor oil._

_"_Raven and Cyborg…not good. And by the sound of it…they're getting close…only about 350 feet away or so."

At this point, Beast Boy finally remembered he was holding a Bo-staff in his hand, a Bo staff no one knew he had. A Bo staff he didn't want anyone to know he had. Acting quickly, Beast Boy did the only thing he could think of. He transformed into a sasquatch, took the Bo staff, and hurled it strait up with great strength. The staff lodged itself into the high, cement ceiling of the training room, effectively keeping it out of sight. The small amounts of cement debris fell to the ground, just before the automated doors swooshed open, showing two very alert super hero teenagers.

"Robin what's up, we heard glass shatter and we came to see if….wait… your not Robin." Cyborg said dumbfounded.

"Yeah… I figured that much for myself." Beast Boy fronted, silently praying that no one looked up.

"What are you doing in here?" Raven questioned.

"What, Robin the only one who can _train_ in the _training _room?" he responded.

"No," Raven began, "but training was never exactly top on your to do list."

"Well, let's just say I made of few revisions to the list," Beast Boy cryptically said. Raven wasn't sure, but she felt there was more behind that statement, she decided to look more into it later.

"Okay, but what's up with the mirror, what happened to it?" Cyborg asked.

"Hmm, what? What happened to what…Oh my!"

"Uhhh…." Cyborg drawled.

"The mirror was fine a few seconds ago. It must've just shattered when you looked into it. Poor thing, so young and to have to suffer such a horrible fate…" Beast Boy said in an overly compassionate voice.

Cyborg fumed at this and Raven just rolled her eyes.

"Funny, now what really happened?" Raven inquired, showings the beginning's of agitation.

"Well, since you asked so nicely, I have no choice but to tell you," Beast Boy sarcastically began, " I was doing some transformation drills, and I guess I got a little too close to the mirror and when I went bull, my horn collided with it. That and Cyborg's mug sure didn't help," he absent-mindedly added.

"Hey dog," Cyborg started as he tapped his temple, "I don't really think your in any position that you'd want to start cracking jokes."

"Oh no? It's looking pretty safe from where I'm standing." Beast Boy smugly said.

"You're pushing it," Cyborg warned.

"What _are_ you two talking about?" Raven said exasperated, tired of being out of 'the know'.

"Well, if you must know, Cyborg has a very compromising photo of Robin's rear in close proximity of my pelvis." Beast Boy said as if it were an every day topic of conversation.

Cyborg completely deflated. His trump card was gone.

"Is that all?" Raven said, irritably disappointed. "Grow up Cyborg." And with that, she left the room.

"I-I….I can't believe you just _did_ that…" Cyborg said, almost at a lost for words.

"Well I did, so you can forget about anymore 'butlering' from me."

Distraught, and partially beaten at his own game, Cyborg turned around to leave the room defeated. But, before he passed through the door frame, Beast Boy called out to him.

"Yo Cy!"

Cyborg slowly turned around, revealing his long fallen face.

"About the bacon strip thing, I need to talk to you about it."

Cyborg forgot about his defeat for the time being, it's a rare occasion for Beast Boy to seriously talk to anyone, so what ever it was, it had to be important.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"I just needed to let you know, that even though I may have joked it off, I was really mad at you about it. You don't seem to take my whole 'vegetarian' thing too seriously."

"How can you blame me? What living creature doesn't eat meat? It's unnatural!"

"Unnatural? Are you really serious? Are you really having a conversation between us about something being unnatural?"

"Point taken."

"No, you don't get my point, that's the problem. If you did get my point, you wouldn't come up with crazy plans to get me to eat meat."

"B…it was just a joke man, chill."

"Cyborg, I can take a joke, but not about something like this."

"Yo man, why not? What's the big deal? Why _don't_ you eat meat? I know you can transform into animals, but it doesn't mean you're a cannibal or anything because of eating meat. Besides, animals eat animals in the wild, it's natural."

"That's not the reason I'm a vegetarian."

"Then what is!"

Beast Boy cast his eyes on the floor.

"I-I can't tell you that, not yet."

There was a brief silence between the two as Beast Boy contemplated what to say next.

"Look, for right now, you are just going to have to respect the fact that I do not consume meat, until I can tell you the reason for it. Can you do that?"

Cyborg looked into Beast Boy's eyes, searching for the genuine-ness in his words. He found what he was looking for.

"Alright B, I can do that, but I'm not going to like it."

Beast Boy's eyes lit up and a smile found its way onto his face.

"Thanks man, that's all I need for right now."

"No prob' man, nothin' between buds," Cyborg said as he extended his fist towards Beast Boy, who promptly pounded it.

Cyborg turned to leave, but before he left he stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"Although, I'm going to miss our morning debate over breakfast," he admitted.

Beast Boy smirked and said, "Now why would we go and stop a beautiful tradition like that?"

Cyborg returned the smirk and made his way out the door.

Beast Boy let out a giant sigh of relief and contently smiled.

"Woah, that went better then I thought. I shoulda' tried this whole 'maturity' thing forever ago."

With that Beast Boy remembered the task at hand. He looked up at his Bo staff and thought of what he had to do to retrieve it. After listening for any possible interference and finding none, he began to put his plan into action. He transformed into a flea and first hopped onto the bench press and then bounded onto the wall, just above the mirrors. He then bounded off of that wall and in mid bound he transformed back into his human form so as to grab hold of the lodged staff, a good 20 feet in the air. Successfully dislodging it from its cement holster, Beast Boy thought of what to do for a landing.

At first he thought of transforming into an animal that's used to landing from good heights, while still being able to hold onto the staff, like a chimpanzee or something. It was then a thought crossed his mind.

…_When a warrior knows his limits, he can surpass them…_

It was then, free falling from 20 feet in the air, that Beast Boy made his decision.

_Time I got to know my limits._

With that thought, he flipped his body so that he was now falling head first.

**_17 feet…14 feet…_**

He placed the staff close to his sternum and held the end so that most of the staff was far past his head. And he fell.

**_9 feet….7 feet…_**

He clenched his arm muscles so he would be able to hold onto the staff in the moment of impact.

**_5 feet…4 feet…._**

**...Impact.**

The flexible material of the staff bent under Beast Boy's weight, and he compensated by swinging his legs in front of him, so that his head didn't hit the padded, cement floor. This caused a vaulting effect and he was propelled forward, about 5 feet in the air. Body filled with adrenaline, he tucked his legs into his chest and performed three eloquent somersaults. Feeling the floor rush towards him, he untucked his legs and landed, kneeling on one knee.

Slowly he looked up and gazed at his reflection. He took his index finger, licked it, and confidently placed it on his derriere.

"SSssssssssssss."

He turned around with his bo staff, and stalked to his room to put it back in its hiding place. Finishing the task, he headed of to the kitchen to reward himself for his accomplishment.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

Raven licked her finger and turned the page to her novel. Right now, she was in her happy place. It was quiet, she had a fresh, steaming cup of green tea by her side, it was quiet, and it was raining outside, providing a nice soothing background noise to accompany her reading. But most importantly, it was quiet. How very rarely it was quiet, especially in the common room, where everyone usually congregated to. Yes, Raven was in her happy place, a place she doesn't visit much. But her visit was unfortunately cut short as the automated doors slid open, revealing her favorite green pest.

_Great…well it was nice while it lasted._

She braced herself for the usual bombardment of completely random and pointless items of conversation that were the typical order of business for Beast Boy.

_First he'll say 'Hey Rae' then ask me what I'm doing. After bringing to his attention that I'm clearly reading a book and saying he wouldn't know much about that, he'll get flustered and say something stupid that, by that time, I'll have drowned out. And then comes the endless stream of jokes that aren't funny. Everytime._

"Hey Rae."

_Hear it comes…_

Beast Boy then walked over to the fridge, pulled out some soy milk, poured himself a glass, and put the carton back into the fridge. After which, he strolled over to the couch and sat down on the opposite end Raven was seated at. He took a sip of his soy milk, slouched, and rested his head on the back of the sofa, quietly enjoying the euphoric melody of rain drops caressing the windows of Titans Tower.

_What? That's it! No 'What are you up to?' No 'Why did the platypus cross the creek!'_

"What are you up to?" Raven asked suspiciously.

Beast Boy looked at her confused, and looked behind him to see if she were talking to someone else. Realizing that she was indeed talking to him he replied to the quixotic accusation.

"Uh…sitting." He said in an obvious way.

"Since when did you ever just…_sit_?"

"It's a fairly easy skill to master Raven; I'm not so dense as to be unable to sit."

"You know what I mean," Raven forewarned

"Uh…actually, no I don't," Beast Boy said starting to get agitated.

"You never just say 'Hey Rae'. Don't you want to know what I'm doing?"

"No, not really," Beast Boy nonchalantly said.

"Why not?" Raven said both confused and perturbed.

"Because, you never seem to want to tell me, so I won't ask anymore." Beast Boy simply put.

Raven thought she had a response for him, so she opened her mouth, but, surprisingly, no words came out. She didn't understand; why is this happening again, why did she suddenly go mute? She tried to speak again, and opened her mouth, but only a gasp could come out.

_Wha…What's wrong with me?_

She was disturbed at the fact that she couldn't get any words out, but she was even more disturbed at the fact that Beast Boy didn't seem to care, not one bit. Almost as if to prove her point, he turned his attention away from her, reared his head back, and took another sip of soy milk, then continued to listen to the diapason of the rain drops.

"Wh-…how could you say that?" Raven asked a little disconcerted.

"How? Because it's the reason, it's the truth."

"That's not the truth, I answer you…sometimes."

"It's the truth Rae, you just don't want to accept it. Funny thing too. People always say they want the truth, but when given it, they reject it. That's why, for some, a well crafted lie is better than truth. This is especially true for you."

_Is this Beast Boy talking? I've never heard him speak like this before._

After contemplating the level of intellect with which Beast Boy was speaking, she actually heard what he just said. What he just said about her. She didn't like what she heard.

"What do _you_ know! I know about truth. The truth about death, the truth about life… truth is not a foreign object to me."

"Maybe, maybe you do know about _truths, _but you know little about _truth_."

"What, what are you talking about? They're the same."

"No, they're not. _Truths_ are little different than facts. The _truth_ about life is that we die. The _truth_ about death is that it's inevitable. Those are **truths**…_facts_. Truth is different; it's more personal, more tangible. Like, the truth about Robin is that although he's a great leader, and a good friend, he's a workaholic that sometimes can go over board and _forget_ about his friends. And, the truth about Starfire is that although she's bubbly a lot of the time, really, she mostly feels out of place and frequently is embarrassed and disappointed in herself in her lack of earthen knowledge. See? _Truth_ and _truths_. Different."

Raven was completely taken aback at the new found depth of his thinking.

_This is unreal. Can this really be Beast Boy? Could he always think like this? What's going on?_

"So-So…what makes you say that I reject the truth?"

"Raven, every time you hide a smile, you hide the truth."

This made Raven angry.

"You know why I hide my smiles, why I don't laugh! You all know!"

"I know, we know, but is that really the truth?"

"What?"

"Tell me, why is it you can clearly show me your anger, but not your happiness?"

"…"

"Is your anger really _less _dangerous than your happiness?"

"No…of course not."

"Then why is it your so quick to show that, but not your smile?"

"Because, it would be- something bad would happen."

"Really? Is that the truth?"

"Of course it is! Why would I lie?"

"I didn't say you were lying, just not aware of the truth."

"Oh, but _you_ are?"

"Yes, I am."

"Oh _really_?" Raven indignantly began, " Then please, enlighten me!"

"I can't, it's not that kind of truth."

"What do you mean 'it's not that kind of truth'?"

"I mean, it's not the kind of truth I can tell you, it's the kind of truth you have to find for yourself."

"If that's the case, than how did you come to learn of it then? How could you possibly know something about me that I don't know about _myself_!"

"Simple, I see things clearly. I don't put a veil over my eyes that makes the world prettier. I know _myself_, so now, I'm beginning to know the _world_."

"Shut up…you don't know anything about me…" Raven said in an angry whisper.

Beast Boy took a long gulp of his soy milk, completely finishing it off and stood to put it in the sink.

"Well Raven, as long as you think that, that I don't know anything about you, remember one thing…" Beast Boy trailed off as he placed his cup in the sink and made his way towards the door. Raven didn't bother to look at him as he spoke; instead, drawing her full attention to the cover of her book.

"…As much as you say that I don't know anything about you, you don't know anything about me. G'night Rae." And then he left the room.

Raven sat there…hearing what he had said.

_He's right…I don't know anything about him, the conversation we just had is proof of that. _

Raven curled up on the couch, clasping her book to her chest. She was in the same place, but it was no longer happy.

_Who does he think he is…_

She pondered this question over and over again as she lay there, all alone, just her and the rain drops that tried their best to ease her mind.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey there folks...been a while hasn't it? Sorry bout the delay but things just kept on comming up and I just kept on gettin preoccupied, but now I'm Here, AND with an extremely long chappie to boot! Just about 2,000 words longer than chapter 1. This chapter took alot of thought to organize right so i hope you'll appreciate it. Now, a few thing about this chapter. It's an extemly long set up for the next chapter, which will blow your MINDS! The language Beast Boy uses is actually ZULU, however i just strnged a bunch of Zulu words togetr, so its not coherent at ALL.Also, i know in chapter 2 i said Raven had **Animorph #13**, but in this story the lines quoted are actually from **Animorph # 15**, so don't be alarmed, i may go back and fix it just to be perfect. That's all there is outta me...Now onto the reviewers...(I will now only post a max of 10reviewers on this page, but all reviews are appreciated, so keep em commin!)

**Mage Kitty:** WOW! Just wow is all i can say. To have a picture drawn from some I created is flattering beyond all comprehension. ThankYou Thankyou Thankyou, your a marvelous artist. And once again i thouroughly enjoyed your review. Thankyou. (This chapter is por vu!)

**Break4Angels: **You deserved the dedication, you been readin since day 1 and i hope you keep on reading. U DA BESTEST EVA!

**Abbadon of Renown: **Glad you like my story, and i feel the same way about Beast Boy. He's such a deep character he practically writes his own story. Thankyou for the compliment.

**Tyr'll: **Best chapter ever? REally! Woah Thanks! I'm glad your reading my story, Snr. loyal reader!

**Lore giver: **Thanks, i personally think authors don't tap much into the African aspect of beast Boy, at least, not much. O and no that's not how Beast Boy pushed Raven out his mind, but good guess. I think you'll like how he did it, but you'll just have to keep reading to find out how. :)

**Silverchild of the Winds: **What?

**Egglette: **Glad it had that effect on you, great review, makes me want to make sure you dont have to criticise me in the future as well.

**nonengel: **Great that it spoke to you on multiple levels, i really appreciat your mature reviews, like a professor or something. Keep em COMMIN!

**Corvus Corvidae: **To start off, i understand that typically Raven is the 'deep thinker' of the group, but you seem to be missing the whole reason for this fic. It's to show a whole other side of Beast Boy, the deep thinker within **him**, but it goes even deeper than that. What do I mean by 'it goes deeper'? You'll see. And i really appreciate you relaying your views on 'truth' but I can't tell if your joking or not. Seeing as im all conflicted and what not, i'll just say this: I don't put much stock into life philosiphies that were copyrighted in 1999. Oh, and Wut's wrong with lavendar? Raven likes to smell pretty too:) Thanks for the review tho, please, keep it comming, i really enjoyed it.

**Wolfess: **Hmm, stop me if I'm wrong, but...i think you like it! I'm Right? SCORE! Thanks for the review and the long awaited chapter 5 is FINALLY here! Enjoy!

And now, without further interruption...Chapter 5...

* * *

Robin took a sip of his coffee, he liked it black. The bitter, addictive taste flooded his taste buds as with every sip he gradually grew more awake from his nights slumber. He had been up all night reviewing the team's expenses. It was time for him to again visit the mayor's office to discuss and adjust the Titans budget. He really hated going to the mayor's office. He hated the fake courtesy and rehearsed smiles that all politicians seemed to share. _It's like a bunch of actors got together to pretend to be real people with real responsibility. Sure, their jobs are important, but the fact of the matter is they hardly do their job._ That's the kind of people Robin hates the most, people who act like people who act responsible.

He took another long swig from his coffee mug, savoring the hot bitter liquid as it spilled down is throat.

_Those are the type of people who thrive off of their duties; people who cherish their titles rather than their obligations. Those people are despicable, selfish people whose priorities revolve around not those they service to, but their own selfish agendas. Too many times have I succumbed to their charade, to grin and bear their obvious hypocrisy. And too many times have I bitten my tongue around those people, people who think they know about justice, and think they're properly tending to their obligations. But, nothing I can do or say can change those people, no matter how much I want to tell them off. I can save dozens of lives in one night, but I'm powerless against beaurocracy. Even if I did call them on one of their acts and had him removed, another one would just replace him and do the exact same thing; just a different hand to shake, and another rehearsed smile to endure._ He really hated going to the mayor's office.

Robin looked solemnly into his mug of black coffee, deeply caught in his thoughts, not really looking at his reflection but knowing it's there.

_I wonder what things would be like if things we run by actual people, instead of people rehearsed to act like people._

"Robin?"

Robin was started out of his thoughts by the disembodied voice and snapped his head up to see who called for him. It was Starfire.

"Yeah Star?"

"Is everything alright with you?"

"Yeah Star," Robin began a little taken aback by her question, "why do you ask?"

"Well, it is that you seemed to be deep in thought."

"Yeah, I guess I did drift away a little there. How could you tell?"

"You seemed to be unusually captivated by your mug of coffee; your gaze had not left it for some time."

"Yeah, normally you only stare at Starfire like that," Cyborg chimed in as he stuffed another fork full of waffles in to his mouth.

It took a second for Robin to catch up. _Had Cyborg really been at the breakfast table the whole time? Had **I **really been here the whole time?_

And finally Robin had actually heard what Cyborg had said. He was awake now.

His brows burrowed and he opened his mouth to vehemently deny Cyborg's accusation, but was cut off by the sugary-sweet voice of the resident Tameranian.

"Robin," Starfire began, "what is it you we're contemplating?"

He really didn't understand it. He just couldn't get it around his head. _How can this girl have such an effect on me?_ In an instant she was able to quell his anger and capture his heart. Her joyous disposition is contagious and her smile infectious. _She embodies everything that is right in this world, but, she didn't come from this world. No, this world isn't capable of producing her perfection. She's an angel from space who blesses me with her attention. _

"Robin?" Starfire asked

Robin blinked his eyes, snapping back to reality. _I really **do** stare; I'll _

_have to work on that. _

_"_Uh…I uh, I was thinking about how I have to head to the mayor's office later today."

"You do not enjoy visiting the mayor's office?"

"No, I hate going there…," a thought hit Robin as he spoke, "…alone…. I hate going there alone, yeah. Um, would you….would you like…to…go with me?" Robin managed.

_What am I thinking! She'll never agree to go with me! I mean I'm "Robin" and she's….she's everything I want in life. But, she's an angel to be **worshipped**, not **approached**. _

He so badly wanted to approach her, dissatisfied with simply observing.

_I'm being selfish. There's no way I deserve to be with **her**. But…but I so badly want to be, I **need** to be. Maybe this one time, this **one** time, my angel will answer my prayer, my very **selfish** prayer._

"I'd love to! It shall be a most glorious occasion!"

Today…Heaven smiled down on Robin.

"R-Really?" Robin asked in disbelief. Quickly regaining his composure he added, "Cool, we should probably leave around one."

"Excellent, one it is!"

Utterly ecstatic about the outcome, Robin took a long sip of his coffee to calm his nerves. After his swig he turned his attention to the rest of the table. Cyborg looked at with a smug eye that held an odd mixture of ridicule and praise, clearly understanding the implications of Robin's request. He chose to ignore him. His gaze then fell upon Beast Boy who seemed to be having an intense battle to remain conscious at the table, clearly unaware of the world around him.

"Ow!" Beast Boy yelped.

Robin snickered at Beast Boy who had just stabbed himself in the cheek in his attempt in feeding himself.

"You know, I would think your hand-eye coordination would be much better with all the games you play," Robin jeered.

"Don't you have a date to get ready for?" Beast Boy groggily retorted.

Cyborg laughed a belly laugh as Starfire blushed excitedly. Robin's smug face quickly turned sour. Apparently Beast Boy was more aware than Robin had thought. Deciding the best course of action was not to dignify him with an answer, Robin turned his attention to Raven's seat which, oddly, Raven was not in.

"Hey, where's Raven?" Robin asked.

"Yes, usually Friend Raven makes her appearance to the 'break of fast' by now."

Beast Boy took a bite of his scrambled tofu eggs.

"Yeah, it's not like her to sleep in, something must be up," Cyborg added.

He took another and another…quick, hurried bites.

"I do believe you are correct. One among us should elect to go inquire of Friend Raven's plight." Starfire concluded.

As expected from the rest of the team Beast Boy was the first to stand up. He wordlessly took his plate and dropped it into the sink. It was then Beast Boy did something the team wasn't expecting. He calmly walked over to the couch, grabbed the remote, and watched television.

Needless to say the rest of the Titans were bewildered. Typically, it was Beast Boy who took it upon himself to lure Raven out of her room, to lend a helping hand that was more often then not unwanted. For him to completely ignore the lack of her presence and then to act as if he couldn't care less was definitely more than alarming.

"Uh…Beast Boy?" Robin started, "Aren't you going to go see what's up with Raven?"

"No. Raven's a big girl. Whatever problem she has, if there even **is** a problem, I'm sure she'll deal with it herself, that's something she's let herself get good at."

The three Titans shared a confused stare. They leaned in close over the table. It was Robin who spoke up first.

"Maybe he's just still tired and doesn't feel like going." He said in a hushed voice.

Starfire and Cyborg nodded their heads in silent agreement.

"Yes, that must be the reason." Starfire whispered.

"I'll go check up on her after I finish breakfast then." Cyborg announced, speaking in his normal voice so as not to alarm Beast Boy of their hushed conversation. He looked over to the couch to see if Beast Boy had picked anything up. Beast Boy was leaning back on the couch, his head resting on the back of the sofa, feet reclined on the coffee table, remote in hand, fully engrossed in the television. _Doesn't look like he heard anything. _With that thought, Cyborg turned his attention back to his breakfast.

(n.n) (o.o) (X.x)

_I'm tired alright, very tired for sure. _Beast Boy lay there, pretending to not have heard anything, when in all actuality he heard every word. With his hearing, they might as well have whispered into a mega-phone. _I wonder if they think my ears are this big just to make me look more adorable. _He flipped the channel he was watching, it was starting to bore him.

(n.n) (o.o) (X.x)

_Truth. The…truth about… Beast Boy. What is it? How much do I not know about him? How much **do** I know about him? Was that really him talking last night?_

Raven lay sprawled out on her bed with her cloak and boots off. Her face displayed her exhaustion. Sleep had not come to her; her mind was too troubled over the events of last night. Her teammate of 3 years had just shown her that after 3 years, she didn't know a thing about him. Of course, none of the Titans talk much about their past, save Starfire, but even she has secrets she wishes not to tell. Raven especially preserves herself as a great mystery to the others.

_So then, why am I so concerned over this? I know nothing about **Beast boy**, he knows nothing about **me**. But, the way he spoke to me last night…_

"…**_Why is it you can clearly show me your anger, but not your happiness?"_**

…_the way he spoke to me…it was almost like…he…understood me. It was almost as if…he understood me… better than I understand myself. But that's not possible! It can't be. _

"**_People always say they want the truth, but when given it, they reject it..."_**

_NO! That can't be the truth! No one understands me, why I do the things I do, much less Beast Boy!_

"…_**that's why, for some, a well crafted lie is better than truth…"**_

_Am I one of those people? Can I not handle the truth? Am I…afraid of it?_

"…_**you know little about truth…"**_

_I can't accept that. I'm better than that. He's wrong, I can handle the truth, and I will know more about him. I refuse to live with a stranger in my own home._

Raven sat up on her bed, crossing her legs into an Indian position. Her resolve stoned, she began to brainstorm in order to solve her conundrum.

_Ok, first of, what exactly **do **I know about Beast Boy? Ok, for one, I know he's green. I know he wears black and purple spandex and he eats tofu. But, why does he eat tofu? Ah! That's one thing I can find out. Ok, what else? Well, he obviously can change into animals. How did he get his powers? That's another thing to find out. Or even, how does his power work? How can he shape-shift into animals? That's even weirder than my powers. To morph into animals…hmm… I think I heard that from some where else too...my neck is starting to get stiff._

Raven stretched her neck too and fro, trying to loosen the tense muscles. Dissatisfied with the results, she began to rock her head in a circular fashion. Around and around and around. But suddenly, her eyes caught something. It was a book on her nightstand.

_I don't remember putting a bo- Oh! That's right, I remember now, I put that there when I was looking for a book to solve my problem with Beast Boy. _

She crawled across her bed over to her nightstand to analyze the book. She picked it up and took a look at the cover.

_Animorphs? When did I get this book? It doesn't look like a book I'd normally read, someone must have given it to me. 'Animorph'….animal morphs… Beast Boy must have given me this. But why? _

Curiosity taking over, she opened the book up, not particularly looking to read the whole thing. She landed on chapter 2.

"Most people would think morphing into an animal is fun."

_Fun?_

"And I guess it is. But what it is, more than fun, is terrifying..."

_Terrifying?_

"Until you've done it, it's impossible to really understand how extreme it is. The body you've had since you were born, the body with two arms and two legs and a head with your own personal face stuck on front, changes. It changes completely. Until nothing is left but your mind. You don't have your fingers to wiggle, or your legs to stand on, or your mouth to talk with. You look at the world through another animal's eyes."

_I never thought of it like that. I wonder if Beast Boy feels this way._

Intrigued to see if she could find anything else that could relate to Beast Boy, she read on.

"…Once my entire body was brilliant green, I began to shrink. The dirty floor of the storeroom rose up to meet me. It was like I was falling. Like I'd passed out and was dropping face first toward the floor. And as I shrank, my feet became bird feet. My thick, solid human bones became hollow bird bones. My internal organs, my lungs and stomach and liver, all twisted around in ways that should have made me scream in agony – except for the fact that morphing technology deadens pain."

Raven's eyes lit up with realization.

"_Deadens pain?" Meaning otherwise it would hurt, excruciatingly. Does it hurt for Beast Boy? If it does…how…how can he take it? I'll just have to- _

"Yo Rae!" Cyborg's booming voice echoed through Raven's door.

"Gah!" she yelped, startled out of her thoughts. Caught off guard and exhausted from lack of sleep, her control over her powers faltered. In an instant, her dark purple pillows exploded into countless pieces as a deluge of feathers showered her room.

"Rae! You okay in there? I heard an explosion! You need me to come in there!"

As the feathers slowly made their descent, Raven reclaimed her composure, or, whatever was left of it. She opened her mouth to shoo Cyborg off, not wanting him to see her in such disarray, but quieted herself when she heard the pounding of buttons. He was entering her access code. It was then it hit her…

_The book!_

Without hesitation, she surrounded the book with a strip of midnight and shot it towards her desk, phasing it safely into one of her drawers. Just as the contraband found its hiding place, the door to Raven's room shot open as a very concerned metal man ran into the room.

"What was…all…the…why are you covered in feathers?"

"I wanted to feel pretty. What do you want?" Raven said in her typical deadpan manner.

Baffled by the scene, and the explanation to it, Cyborg's train of thought wavered and his ability to talk failed him.

"If you came in here to show me your impression of an idiot, don't worry, I've seen it before," Raven stoically said.

Rebounded by Raven's remark, Cyborg recalled his original purpose for entering the lion's den, and feeling it was best not to inquire of the reasons behind the feathers, Cyborg relayed it.

"…I…you weren't at breakfast today. I was just checkin' up to see if you were ok."

"Breakfast? It's Breakfast time?"

"Um…yea." Cyborg said, not believing that someone could not know.

Not trusting him at his word, Raven scooted off of her bed and walked over to her dark purple drapes. She found that the dark purple color was choice for blocking out sunlight.

She briskly withdrew the drapes and the sunlight of a gorgeous morning day beamed into her face. She covered her eyes with left arm.

_Guess he wasn't kidding._

With her eyes still shielded, she drew back the drapes with her right arm to shut off the alien light from her room. It wasn't wanted. Darkness restored, she felt safe to let her arm down and turned back around to face Cyborg.

"Well, I guess the evidence is against me. I didn't even-," Raven stopped, seeing that Cyborg was a little flustered, even, a little red in the face. Raven raised her eyebrows inquisitively, "What's got you all worked up?"

"I-It was…it was dark so… I didn't notice before…" Cyborg rambled.

"What are you talking about?"

"But when you opened the drapes…"

"What!" Raven exclaimed. "Come out with it already!"

"I don't see why you hide behind that cloak Raven, leotards really suit you." Cyborg finally finished.

Not catching on at first, Raven stood there trying to interpret the compliment.

_What? 'Leotards really suit you?' What's he talking about? _

She looked down at herself.

_Oh No! I forgot I didn't have my cloak on! And…and when I went over to open the drapes, I…had my….back…turned…_

Cyborg had just complimented her on her bum.

Raven outstretched her ash-colored hand, an enraged look on her face, and cast a portion of her charcoal energy plastering it over Cyborg's eyes, effectively censoring herself.

"**OUT!**" she commanded.

"But, I can't see!" Cyborg pitifully explained.

"Then let me help you." She menacingly said.

Raven opened the door with her energy, and once again thrusting out her hand, sent a small burst of it into Cyborg. Like a bullet he shot out of her room, careening straight into the adjacent wall, landing face first into the floor. Raven walked towards her door, stopping at the entrance. She placed a hand on the close button.

"I'll be down in a few."

She shut the door. At the same instant the blindfold she gave Cyborg dissolved.

"Great…" he shakily began from the floor, speaking towards the door, "see you in a few then."

He took his time about getting off of the ground.

(O.o) (n.n) (X.x)

"Friend, why is it you appear injured? What has befallen you?" Starfire asked as she flew over to her metal friend as he wobbly walked towards the couch.

"Waddaya think Star? I mean, he **did **go to Raven's room." Beast Boy explained, sitting comfortably on the sofa. "So, what was it this time? She blast you into a wall, or, pummel you with books?"

"The first one," Cyborg solemnly said as he sat down next to his olive friend.

"Well, at least **your** metal. It hurts a lot more when you're green."

"Yo man, I gotta give you props. You **always **go up there. I don't know how you do it sometimes."

"Some times can be better than other times, its part of the challenge. But usually I only receive _physical_ damage if I say something stupid."

He then looked over at Cyborg, who oddly seemed to be squirming under his gaze.

"Wait…you **did** say something stupid didn't you!" Beast Boy excitedly said.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about."

"Aw, c'mon, I know you know what I'm talking about. Just tell me already!"

Letting out a big sigh, Cyborg began to relay the events.

"Well, when I went up to her door and was just about to knock I heard this kinda…explosion, but it was sorta like a muffled explosion. Anyway, so I go rushing in and the first thing I see is her and half the room covered in feathers. So, of course the first thing that comes outta my mouth is, 'what's with the feathers', and you know what she told me? "I wanted to feel pretty. What do you want." So of course I know that's not the reason but I can't help but be a little thrown off balance. After a moment of speechlessness she calls me an idiot and that brings me back to life. So I tell her that I came to check up on her cause she wasn't at breakfast. And, she's all like 'Breakfast? It's Breakfast time?' So I look at her like 'duh' and she walks over to the drapes in her room. Now, BB, you have to understand that it's dark in her room. I mean **dark** dark…"

"Yea…and the sky's blue, now go on, what happened?"

"…well, since it was so dark, I didn't really see what she was wearing right. So she opens her drapes and sunlight comes pouring into the room, and she and I are blinded for a second. But I recover first, seeing that I was outside already and she wasn't. And, I open my eyes, BB, and I see that Raven isn't wearing a cloak, BB."

"So? Oh…wait a minute…you mean…"

"Yep. I got a full good view of Raven's cloak less ga-dunk-a-dunk."

"No way! Raven! Seriously!"

"Yep."

"So **that's** when she kicked you out the room?"

"No. She didn't even notice that I noticed. I guess she forgot she wasn't wearing one."

"Well, what happened next?"

"I was pretty stunned, needless to say, and I'm standing there like an idiot right. So she turns around and starts to say something, I don't know, I wasn't really listening at this point. Anyhow, she starts to say something but stops seeing that I'm all frozen in place or whatever. So she's like 'What's up with you?' and I tried to answer her, but I'm just rambling like a moron. As you can imagine she's getting pretty fed up and is all like 'Just spit it out'. And that's when I so _stupidly_ said…"

Just before Cyborg could finish his story the doors to the common room slid open, revealing a very disgruntled Raven. Cyborg stopped dead in his tracks. Slowly, he turned his neck so he could look over his back. He looked at Raven, Raven looked at him, and she looked at him in a way that could make a man crumple. It stayed that way for a while. Beast Boy watched on to see what would befall his metal friend. Cyborg suddenly shot up from his seat.

"I'll be in the garage if anyone needs me." Cyborg said loudly and not looking at anyone. He walked around the couch, and with much effort, past Raven who acted as if he wasn't even there. The moment he reached the door, he bolted top speed out of there.

"What was that about?" Robin asked Starfire. She simply shrugged; it was something she recently picked up.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

Disappointed by not being able to hear the reason for Cyborg's pummeling, Beast Boy turned his attention back over to the television.

Flip.

Flip.

Flip.

_Nothing on._

Flip.

Flip.

Flop.

Beast Boy looked over to his left, to see who had flopped onto the couch. It was Raven. She sipped her cup of green tea and opened her book to the page she left it on. Seeing that it was Raven who had joined him on the couch, he returned his attention to the tube.

Flip.

_Maybe I should just ask her. Nah, she'd never tell me._

Flip.

Sniff.

_What? What's that smell? _

Sniff. Sniff.

_It's coming off of Raven. _

_Nervousness…hesitation…and…determination? She's conflicted over something. Maybe I should- no. She wouldn't tell me, no way. But I wonder what she's so tense about. _

Just then images of their discussion last night came flooding back to him.

_Could that be it? Did I really fluster her that much? I had meant to shock her, tried to have her begin to respect me, but if it's causing her this much distress… No, it had to be done, there was no mistake. I wonder what's going through her head._

Flip.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

_I should ask him now. He's right here, there's nothing stopping me._

Flip.

_How should I approach this? How do I start? What if he doesn't want to tell me?_

Flip.

Flip.

_I can't do this now in front of everyone. But maybe they want to know too. Did he talk to them like he talked to me last night? Do they know? _

Flip.

_Why hasn't he said anything to me yet? Can he tell I'm not really reading? Why am I so nervous all of the sudden? I was just going to walk in here and ask him. Is it because I feel I don't know him anymore? That shouldn't matter. He's still Beast Boy, my teammate. _

Flip.

_I can't do this right now, not with the others around. I'll wait until later._

"Here Raven," Beast Boy said.

"Here wha-," Raven started, but stopped abruptly as she barely managed to catch the chucked remote. "What's this for?"

"It's a magical little device that allows you to switch channels from the comfort of your seat," he said with a grin.

"Let me rephrase, why are you giving me this?"

"So you can switch channels from the comfort of your seat of course."

"Uh-huh."

"I'm goin' out for a fly, thought you might want the remote."

"You know I don't watch television."

"Yea, well, a little change never hurt anybody."

Then he left.

_Maybe, but it's **killing** me._

She briefly examined the remote, determining whether or not to use it.

_Why not._

She raised the device towards the tube and flipped it randomly; it landed on the weather channel.

" **Today: **Hi's in the mid- 70's Lows in the low 50's, partly cloudy with winds facing the North at 5 to 10 miles an hour.

**Tonight: **Cloudy with 85 chance of sever thunderstorms, could carry in to the next-,"

Click.

_That's all the change for one day I think. _

As she returned to reading her book, her thoughts again fell on her predicament with Beast Boy.

_He doesn't seem to be bothered in the least. Is that just a ruse too? I wonder when he'll be back. I'll talk to him then._

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

She didn't talk to him when he came back. She didn't talk to him an hour later. She didn't talk to him after lunch or before the team went through their daily training regimen. She didn't talk to him after his midday snack or after the team had watched a movie. She didn't talk to him before dinner; she didn't talk to him after dinner. She didn't even talk to him before he went to bed. It was 12:45am and she still hadn't talked to him.

_Well that was a rousing success. I had ample opportunity and I still didn't talk to him. What's with me? I never had a problem about approaching him before. I never had a problem about approaching **anyone**. Why now? _

Raven lay there in her bed, again enduring what she thought would be another restless night, all on the account of him. Well, Beast Boy, and the ferocious thunderstorm roaring outside didn't serve any assistance.

_Maybe something to eat will help me sleep._

With that thought, she pulled her covers off over herself, wrapped her robe around herself, and made her way to the kitchen. But, as she got closer and closer, she heard something queer.

_What…is that?_

As she cautiously inched further down the hallway, she found the closer she got to the common room, the louder it got, but, even weirder than that, she found the sound to be…melodic.

_Is someone…singing?_

Intrigued by who could be singing, and no longer concerned that it could be an intruder (who would be dumb enough to infiltrate Titans Tower just to sing), she walked more briskly to the source.

Finally she reached the door, and put her ear to it to hear better.

_Doesn't sound like English. I don't know what language that is. And…I think there's more than one person in there. I got to see who it is._

Not wanting to interrupt the singing, she phased through the wall and into the kitchen. She silently thanked it was dark and crouched behind the island. She slowly looked around the corner and, upon seeing the culprit; her eyes almost fell out of her face.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

"No…I'm sorry…arm…I…didn't mean…I'm sorry…so sorry…AH!"

Beast Boy sprung into an upright position, coated in cold sweat, panting heavily.

"Same dream," he said in a whisper to himself. "Ugh, throats dry… need a glass of water."

He hopped out of bed and out of the door navigating through the dark hallways with ease, using his nocturnal vision, and made his way to the common room.

Half way there, he heard a whimpering sound.

_Who was th- _**KADOOM!**

Beast Boy fell on his butt upon hearing the thunder.

_Geez! I didn't even know it was storming. There's that whimpering again. Sound like its coming from the common room. _

He rose up, dusting off his bottom, and continued his trek.

_Who could be in there? _**BADOOM!**_ Hmm, sounds like the whimpering gets louder every time it thunders._

Finally reaching the door, he stealthily made his way through so as not to disturb the person inside. He looked left, and he looked right.

_There he is. _

Right near the window, on the sill, laid a huddled mass. He slowly and quietly walked closer so he could identify the mass. As he got closer, he could more clearly hear the voice.

_Sounds like…_

He finally got close enough to see that the huddled mass had copper hair.

"Starfire?" he audibly asked.

"Eep!" Starfire shrieked, abruptly raising her head causing her to lose her balance on the sill and landing on the floor.

"F-Friend Beast B-Boy! I hadn't heard you come in!"

"What are you doing out here?" Beast then covertly sniffed hard into the air.

_Fear? She's afraid? Of what? The storm?_

"I w-was simply just….retrieving…," **KRAKPHOOM! **, " eep!" she yelped.

Beast Boy took a seat next to her quaking form, shoulder to shoulder, on the floor and rested his back against the wall under the window.

"You're afraid? Of the storm I mean…are you scared?"

Starfire then looked at him in mock offense, which wasn't too convincing considering her inability to stop shaking.

"O-Of course not! I am a T-Tameranian War princess! I do not fret because of a-," **FOOSHKADOOM!**

Unable to control herself, she latched onto Beast Boy at the waist, seeking comfort from the nightmare outside. Startled at first, Beast Boy didn't know what to do, so he chose to do something he always does when he doesn't know what to do. Make it into a joke. But, just as he was about to try to lighten the situation, Starfire cut him off.

"I-I…must apologize for my behavior friend," she spoke softly into his chest, not wanting to face the world outside, "I can't seem to stop myself," she finished with a sob.

Once again at a loss for words, he tried desperately to think of something to say that could comfort his friend. But, again, Starfire beat him to the punch.

"Please…don't tell Robin…I…I don't…please…don't tell Robin…" She quietly pleaded as she seemed to cling tighter onto him. And she began to cry, she began to cry at her weakness. Feeling hot tears beginning to soak through his shirt and onto his chest, Beast Boy now knew what to do. He finally put his arm around Starfire's shoulders, and he began to sing.

"Ngijabula kakhulu ukukubona/ Yize mina/ nawe singakhulumi/ ulimi olulodwa angingabazi/ ukuthi…" It was a slow paced song, like a lullaby. Starfire's shoulders started to lose their tense. Seeing that it had an effect on her he began to sing with more compassion.

"Ungathanda yini ukuphila ngesikhathi okuyobe/ kungasekho ngaso/ inzondo ubunzima/ ukugula ngisho nokufa/ khona…" Her cling on Beast Boy began to loosen and she looked up at him in teary eyed contact. Now seeing her looking at him, he looked back now singing directly to her instead of into the air. She was fascinated.

"Wucabange nje ukuthi ukuphila/ kuyoba mnandi kanjani lapho…"

_He has such love and compassion…what a truly great friend…_

"Friend wha-," But before she could ask, Beast Boy shushed her, gently telling her to let him finish. She complied; she really didn't want it to end. Just as he was about to begin again, his nose picked up a foreign smell.

_Smells like…incense? Raven. She is listening somewhere. Good._

He began again.

"Lawo mazwi egcwaliseka/ Kodwa-ke ungaqiniseka kanjani/ ukuthi wean/ Elithenjisiwe." He had finished his lullaby. Starfire had finished quaking, and didn't even notice the storm that was still waging outside.

"Friend, that was most beautiful, what was it?" Starfire whispered fascinated, still holding onto his waist and looking into his comforting eyes.

"It's a song my mother use to sing to me when I was little, I hated thunderstorms too." He said with a smile.

Starfire broke eye contact with him, resting the side of her face onto his chest, looking at the floor.

"I-It…was…It was thunder storming…when…my sister sold me as a slave. It... was thunder storming…" She shakily stated, barely able to get it out.

"What's your favorite animal?" Beast Boy asked.

Starfire once again looked into his eyes. "What? I do not understand."

"What's your favorite animal, on earth?" He patiently stated again with as much passion as before.

"The koala, I am very found of it." She said still uncertain of the reason for the question.

Receiving an answer, Beast Boy stood up, holding onto her arms so she would follow, and made his way to the couch. As he made his way, he secretly sniffed into the air.

_Hmm, I don't smell her now, she must have left._

Reaching the couch, he sat Starfire down.

"Friend, what is the purpose of this?" She asked confusedly, but still trustingly.

"You need some rest." And with that he morphed himself into the cuddliest koala bear he could manage, and hopped into Starfire's arms.

Understanding immediately, Starfire snuggled her green bear friend into her arms, rested on her side, brought her legs up closer to her chest, and began to fall fast asleep. But, before she drifted completely away, she leaned her head down towards the koala's ear and whispered, "Thank you Beast Boy."Not 5 minutes after that, she was completely asleep.

Seeing that her breathing had leveled into a constant rhythm, he was confident she was fully asleep. He then morphed into a fly, flew from between her arms, and went back to human over the back of the couch. He then went out the door and into the hallway closet to pick up a blanket. Finding one, a pink one at that, he made his way back to the common room and over to where she lay. He, very gently, laid the blanket over Starfire's sleeping form and very quietly said, "You're welcome."

Completing his task, he went back through the doors and journeyed back to his room. Now feeling his tired take over him, he slipped into bed and flopped his head into his pillow. Finding sleep was coming fast to him; one final thought left his conscious mind:

_Maybe I can't stop my own nightmares, but I'm glad I can help my friend's with theirs. I'm okay with that._

And he fell asleep.

* * *

**BOOYAH! **


	6. Chapter 6

Hey there Chums! Sorry about my brief hiatus...just caught up in junk and junk- y'know? Anyhow, i've returned with an extra large chapterooni...bordering **10,000 words!** I utterly have Carpal Tunnel Syndrom now. Any how this is when things get hot, and only expect things to get even hotter! Also, in the later chapters you'll really begin to see why exactly this story is call Simplicity. Sad to say but i'm gonna have to forgo the reviews this time seeing as its 3:37 am right now. :( However i will have to give a special thanks to Corvus Corvidae for the email ya sen meh, tellin me to get my lazy but in gear. THANKYA! Just what i needed. Anyhow, here's chapter 6, ENJOY! (Proceeds to pass out :s)

* * *

"Let us see… 'Add one of the teaspoons of the extract of vanilla, and a half of butter stick. Mix until mild lumps appear for body and texture'. Excellent! This shall be a glorious meal!" 

It was early in the morning and normally, the Titan's day would have yet to have been started. But this morning, Starfire felt exceptionally energized, which was odd for her the day after a thunderstorm. Typically she would drag about the tower, suffering from a fearfully sleepless night. But she had someone to thank for that not being the case today.

"'Pour onto skillet and let cook until bubbles form at the top and flip over. Repeat for as many servings as desired'. So it shall be done marvelous book of recipes."

So she went about her business cheerfully, cooking breakfast for her very good friend who had yet to awaken. But, just as she poured her first pancake onto the skillet, the doors slid open. She snapped her head to see if it was who she was waiting for, horrified that he'd made an appearance before she had finished.

"Hey Star."

She breathed a sigh of relief, it was only Robin.

"Hello Friend Robin. How are you this fine morning?" She asked as she returned to tending to her pancakes.

"Same as always. You…uh…cooking breakfast for…everyone?" He asked, trying to hide his dread.

"Oh no Robin, I am not."

Robin inwardly sighed in relief; he was running out of ways to dodge her cooking.

"So, you got up this early to cook your own breakfast?"

"No, that is not the case; I am up cooking for someone else, not myself."

Robin's heart skipped a beat.

"W-Who are you cooking for then?"

She turned her head just enough to cast her eyes on him over her shoulder. Robin's heart skipped another beat as her pools of jade locked onto him. And as she began to answer him her eyes lulled as she reminisced of a memory that was now very dear to her.

"For a friend to whom I am very grateful to know," she said in a distant dreamy way.

And they stood there for a beat, looking at each other, until Starfire broke their gaze, as she brought her attention back to her pancakes, flipping one off the skillet and onto a plate, pouring another to be cooked.

"Starfire…I…you didn't….thank you. Thanks a lot." He said slowly and from his heart, as he approached her from behind.

"For what frie-," she began to ask, but stopped out of shock as she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her stomach, and a spiky head of hair tickle the back of her neck. And they were frozen in time. Starfire with a shocked expression on her face, arms held in the air, spatula in hand; and Robin, clasping onto her waist with a face of contentment. And as the intimacy of the moment became apparent to her, the shocked expression on her face turned into one of pleasure and gratification. She let her arms fall to her side, and unconsciously held onto his wrists which were bound together atop her belly button. And as she found comfort and security being held there, in his arms, her head drifted down and down, until her eyes fell upon the skillet that held a cooking pancake, one that was not for Robin. None that were for Robin. And her face of solace turned into a face of regret. Not wanting to end the moment, but knowing it must be done, she unlatched his hands and spread his arms wide, ending the embrace. Still holding onto his hands, she turned around to face him, finding a look of confusion and disappointment etched onto his face. She took in a deep breath.

"Robin, I fear there is a misunderstanding between us."

_Oh god…I knew I shouldn't have hugged her…she doesn't like me like I do her. I'm so stupid! SO STUPID!_

"I'm sorry Star, I really don't know what I was thinking, I-I shouldn't have hugged you like that, I-," He hastily apologized, only to be cut of by the calm, sugary sweet voice of Starfire.

"There is no cause for apology friend. Although I truly value your company and am indeed grateful to be your friend, these pancakes are not for you." She stated with regret clearly in her voice.

"O-oh," he began, clearly embarrassed by his actions, "Then who'd you make them for?"

"They…they are for friend Beast Boy."

"Beast Boy?" Robin exclaimed, clearly shocked.

"Yes." She answered with a slightly confused air.

"Why would you make pancakes for Beast Boy!" He asked, genuinely curious, past embarrassment forgotten for the moment.

Starfire's eyes drifted towards the floor

"He…he helped when I feared no one could. He gave me the gift of serenity. So I was driven by gratitude to do something for him. Though it is not much, it was the only thing I could think of. But I believe in my heart that Beast Boy will be grateful for anything I give him, and content even if it is nothing." She said in a low voice.

"How did he…how was he able to give you a gift like that. How can you give serenity?" he asked.

"He shared a part of his soul with me." She answered, looking directly into his eyes.

"I-I think, I would like to give you that gift as well."

"Then you need only do as he did. Share with me, and I will share with you. Confidence…that is serenity." She said with a smile, and through hers a smile graced his lips as well.

And they stood there, smiling at each other as they opened another part of their hearts to one another, until…

"Uh…I think your pancake is burning." Robin pointed out.

Her eyes widened with realization as she twirled around to indeed find smoke rising from off of the bottom of the pancake. "Krat!" She yelled as she hurriedly ran over to the skillet and began to scrape the charred object from off of it.

Robin couldn't help but snicker at her antics. Deciding to let her alone to her work, he walked over to the breakfast table where his newspaper lay and began reading it. _So she's making them for Beast Boy. Wonder if I should envy or pity him. It **is** Star's cooking after all. _He flipped the page.

A comfortable silence fell over the two as each became engrossed in what they were doing. Starfire, after fully disposing of the charred object, poured more batter to be cooked. One after another she cooked them until her full stack of delicious pancakes was finally done. _Finished at last, _she thought to herself excitedly. She moved to put the skillet into the dishwasher until her eyes fell upon her bowl of mix, there was a little bit left. Seeing that the stack was plenty hearty as it was, she made to dispose of it into the trash, that is until she heard the rustling of newspaper. She decided to put the batter to better use.

Just as she set the pan back onto the stove, the automated doors once again skimmed open.

"Mornin' peeps!" Cyborg boisterously announced, effectively making his presence known.

"Hey Cy," Robin greeted, never looking away from his paper.

"Salutations friend Cyborg," Starfire said, seemingly concentrated on a new project.

Taking in notice that Starfire was at the stove, Cyborg's bright morning face quickly fell to that of a dead man's.

"You wouldn't happen to be cooking breakfast for the team, now would you Star?" He managed to inquire without sounding too abysmal.

"Sorry Cy, V.I.P only." Robin answered, saving Star the trouble of explaining.

Caught between an odd mixture of relief and irritation, Cyborg decided to find out more information before voicing his opinion.

"'V.I.P only!' Who's more important than ol' Cyborg?"

"I can think of a few people." A voice said.

Instantly recognizing the deadpan delivery, a surprised Cyborg jumped forward and span around to see none other than the team's resident goth.

"R-Raven! Didn't hear you come in!"

"Yeah, I gathered that." She said as she brushed past him to the cabinet that held her tea of choice.

As she filled her tea pot with water, she could still feel his eyes watching her movements intensely, almost as if to watch for a surprise attack of some sort. Deciding she wasn't in the mood for it, she figured she should quell his fears, at least for the moment.

"In case you're still concerned over the 'incident' the other day," she began not turning to face him, "I've decided to chalk it up to a moment in which you had a lapse of brain activity and let you live." She turned off the facet, seeing that her teapot was full, "at least for now." Satisfied after hearing a sigh of relief escape his mouth, she made her way to the stove to boil the water. She was mildly surprised to see Starfire manning it. She was then mildly uneased to see that she was cooking. She thought of asking her why she had decided to cook, but decided against it, she wasn't much of a breakfast person anyway, tea would suffice.

"Morning."

"Oh! Good morning friend Raven, I had not realized you had joined us this morning."

"Yeah, you seemed a little…preoccupied."

"Oh yes friend, I am- ,"

Just then, the doors opened for the last time, revealing the final member of the team. And Raven's heart stopped.

"Morning dudes and dudettes." Beast Boy voiced with a yawn.

"Yo," Both Cyborg and Robin said at the same time. Robin, however, folded his paper up in laid it on the table. Now that the guest of honor had arrived he wanted to see how things played out.

"Friend Beast Boy! You have arrived at last!" an excited Starfire exclaimed as she quickly flew with all her exuberance towards him. And Raven just stood there as Starfire blew past her; she just stood there unmoving and unspeaking as memories of last night flooded her head. And as everything came back to her, she watched.

"Um…yeah…I guess I have…" Beast Boy said uncertainly, he wasn't use to having his presence being made into such an event.

"Come, come, sit! I have something I wish to give you!" She said, barely able to contain her excitement as she grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him to his seat. They stopped when she reached the table and, with a huge smile on her face, gestured for him to sit. Slowly and confusedly he did as told and sat down where a confused Cyborg and an amused Robin sat looking at him.

"Glorious, one moment please!"

"S-Sure…" Beast Boy replied. As soon as she left Cyborg got in his face. Close in his face. "What!" Beast Boy finally asked agitated.

"**_You're_** the V.I.P.!" He asked accusingly.

"I'm the _wha_-," he begun to retort, that is until a stack of hot, fresh, golden flap jacks dribbling with syrup were placed in front of him along with a tall glass of orange juice. The aroma was saliva inducing and took over his senses. He then looked up to see Starfire's ever smiling face beaming down on him.

"I made this for you."

It was then it hit him. **Starfire **_cooked_ food for **_him_** to eat. _**Starfire **cooked _it. He tried his best to maintain his smile and hide his dread.

"You did? Thanks Star, it looks great." He said with all the enthusiasm he could muster. _But looks are more than less deceiving._

Starfire then stood expectantly over him, awaiting the first bite. Noticing this, Beast Boy covertly gulped and picked up his fork. With a tinge of trepidation he sliced through the layers. _Seems to be cooked through, fluffy even. _And with one more glance at Starfire face, he bucked up and quickly placed a portion in his mouth.

It was a delayed reaction. He had readied his mind for a gooey, foul, disgusting taste to riddle his senses, but it wasn't the case. It took his mind a second to wrap around the idea that it wasn't disgusting, but when it did, what he found was pure euphoria. His eyes watered as the heavenly flavor surged his taste buds and unlocked a new level of delicious. The fluffy, buttery morsel melted in his mouth as the sweet syrup coated every corner of his tongue. Slowly, he savored it as he found happiness in ever bite, and, almost sadly, he concluded the melody as he swallowed the little piece of paradise that graced his plate. And he froze, eyes wide.

Starfire leaned in close to gauge his reaction. The whole kitchen was quiet as they awaited his verdict. Even Raven, who was caught in her thoughts, awaited the outcome.

Finally he spoke.

"Starfire…" He started, speaking slowly and carefully, "this could quite possibly be the best tasting batch of pancakes I have ever consumed in my entire life."

The others we're floored.

"Truly?" Starfire excitedly asked.

"Most truly, they're wonderful, thank you." Beast Boy said looking her straight in the face.

"No friend…there is no need for thanks…"

"Bu-," He started, but was quickly quieted by Starfire two hands, which were gingerly placed on both sides of his face.

The others looked on curiously, especially Cyborg who was completely confused.

"These pancakes were my thanks to you, my very dear friend…this is my thanks." She stated as she began to lean closer, closer to Beast Boy's face. **_TSUUUUUUUUUUUUU_**….went Raven's teapot. Robin stopped breathing and his heart beat faster with every inch their faces got closer, Cyborg's mouth just dropped further and further, and Raven just watched on, understanding completely what she was so thankful for.

And Beast Boy sat still as Starfire leaned in closer until her lips finally gently, sweetly, pressed against his forehead with all the gratitude she could relay. And he understood. This was her gratefulness, for what he did for her.

But suddenly, a memory flashed in front of his eyes.

_**"Is it good?" **_

_**"Yeah mom it tastes great!" **_

_**"Heh…I'm glad. I made it for you, Garfield." **_

_**And she leaned over and kissed his forehead.**_

Starfire slowly pulled away and stood up straight again, a placid, satisfied smile on her face. However her features turned into one of concern as she looked upon Beast Boy's face. He appeared frozen in place eyes lulled with accepted sadness, as a single tear rolled down his face.

"Friend, what is the matter?" Starfire asked.

Recovered from the action, Robin and Cyborg saw his appearance as well. As did Raven. Realizing his mistake, he quickly rubbed his eye as he thought of a lie to cover for his display.

"Nothing, a strand of you hair must have fallen in my eye." He said light heartedly.

"Oh. Well then please, finish your meal before it gets cold, I do not believe it will taste as good that way." She suggested.

"Don't have to tell me twice." He said as he greedily began digging in.

Believing his story, Robin and Cyborg redirected their attention to the fact that his breakfast looked so good, and theirs didn't exist.

"Man! Now what am I supposed to do for breakfast?" Cyborg exclaimed.

"Don't you have a baby cow or a helpless pig to mercilessly massacre or something?" Beast Boy sarcastically suggest between mouthfuls.

"Ha Ha," Cyborg dryly replied as he got up and made his way over to the fridge to search for some nourishment.

Even Robin felt a pang of jealousy as he peered upon Beast Boy's plate. The fact that it was good, and especially the fact that Starfire had made it for him made him just a tad bit envious.

_Meh…whatever. I'll just go out and get something to eat later. Besides…maybe she'll make me breakfast some day…_ he thought as he dismissed the notion and reached for his news paper to check the today section. But just as he opened it did he hear the sound of a plate being put down right in front of him. Quickly he closed the paper to see a pancake in the shape of an 'R' set right in front of him with a fork and a knife, along with a cup of coffee being placed right in front of his eyes, with a orange hand connected to it. He followed the hand until he reached the eyes of Starfire smiling down on him.

"This is…for me?" Robin asked, still not believing it.

"Yes, I have made this for you using the remaining batter from Beast Boy's pancakes," she began to explain, she leaned over to whisper into his ear, " because the hug was most enjoyable."

He turned a light shade of red at the confession but managed to say, "Thank you."

"You are most welcome." She said as she went off to tend to the dished she dirtied in her making of the pancakes.

He picked up the fork, still looking down at the 'R' shaped pancake, but briefly brought his eyes to look upon Beast boy. Beast Boy met his gaze with a knowing smirk, implying so many things, mouth still full of pancake. Robin's expression turned a little sour after meeting his gaze, but went back to a pleasant one as he used his fork to cut out a piece of his pancake. He placed the section into his mouth and his eyes lit up with delight. _Hey! This is good! _It was gone in a matter of seconds.

(O.o) (n.n) (X.x)

Beast Boy put down his fork on his now empty plate, patting his stomach with satisfaction. _Man that was tasty. _ He then got up to place his plate in the dish washer. Covering his nose as he passed by Cyborg who was cooking a stomach-churning amount of bacon, he put the dish in its destination. He then made his way over to the couch, where he wasn't aware Raven had been sitting, sipping her tea. He leapt over the back on the other side from where she sat, somehow landing softly so as not to disturb her too much.

She didn't even blink. _That's odd, thought I woulda gotten some kind of reaction from her. _

"Raven?"

She didn't answer, no, she didn't say a word. She just slowly turned her neck, as if it were the only mobile part of her body, and looked at him, looked at him deeply. He met her gaze. _Those eyes, they look…tired. But somehow, they still look intense, it's like she's looking through me, into my being. It's like she's trying to solve something. Why are her eyes so intensely tired? She's troubled._

"So, how'd you like my performance?"

This got a reaction out of her. Her eye's slightly bulged as she directed her attention elsewhere, not moving her head but just casting her gaze.

"Your…performance?" She pretended not to know.

"Yeah, I know you heard me singing. Star liked it, she made me pancakes. Guess you didn't like it then huh? No pancakes."

"How did…What language was it?" Raven asked ignoring his stab at a joke.

"It was Zulu."

"Zulu?" Raven asked, genuinely confused.

"You don't know where Zulu originates?" She shook her head. "That's odd, I figured with all those books you read there isn't much that you don't know."

"I wasn't born here remember? I don't come from earth, and I've only been here for a little while, I'm not that familiar with other cultures."

"Heh, guess it slipped my mind. You don't talk like Star; you talk like you've always been here. Anyway, Zulu is an African tongue."

"African? How do you know Zulu if it's African?"

"Picked it up from my hometown."

"Hometown? You're from Africa?"

"No, not quite, but might as well have been."

"What? What does that mean?"

"Here I am, answering all your questions, and you still didn't answer mine."

"…What?"

"Did you like my singing?" He asked with a grin.

"It-It was…nice, I suppose…" She managed to say.

"Oh my, a compliment from Raven! Some one call the ambulance, I think I'm gonna faint!"

"Whatever." She said, turning her head away from him.

"I'm glad though, that you like my singing. It makes me happy." Beast Boy said in a sincere voice.

She turned her head back toward him, to see a gentle yet genuine smile on his face.

"H-How did…you know I was there? That I was listening?"

"Easy," he said as he leaned in close to whisper in her ear, "Magic."

"Don't mess with me," Raven grimly said. Peturbed, she covered herself in her energy and flew through the ceiling, straight to the roof, leaving behind a confused Beast Boy. _Oh man, I didn't know she was that upset. Great, just when I thought things were getting better. _Half-heartedly he picked up the remote and turned to a random channel, not really paying attention. He was deep in thought contemplating how he was going to fix what just seems to get more broken as the days go by.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

_Does he think this is some game! How dare he mess with me like that! Doesn't he know the strife he's been causing me lately? The headaches and all the uncertainty? I don't even know how to act around him anymore. And it seems when I figure one thing out…or at least I think I've figured one thing out, he does something that surfaces a host of other questions. How many lies and half-truths has he coated himself with over the years? How much does he have bottled up inside him? Why can't I just ask **him** these questions instead of asking myself? So many questions…questions of are no use. I just tried to ask him a question, but his response did nothing but raise **more** questions. What is it with him? Why is he such a mystery?_

Raven's mind pondered for the answers to her questions as she dangled on the edge of the roof of Titan's Tower. Her hair and cloak blew in the wind as the smell of salt water filled her lungs. Normally she would find this atmosphere to be relaxing, but now all it did was mask the turmoil that stormed inside her.

_What am I to do? Talking to him is out of the question, it only seems to cause more problems. Besides, it would just take too long, I can't live with this anxiety much longer. No, I only have one choice: I have to scan his memories. But…the last time I tried to enter his mind…_

"_**Don't EVER do that again!"**_

_He somehow pushed me out of his head. I still don't know how he did that. Plus, he was really angry about me going into his mind…I've never seen him that angry before…with anyone. But really, how much do I know anyway. I'll just have to do it when he's asleep. It's my only choice._

She raised her head to look out onto the sparkling ocean surface, filled with determination, all the while trying her best to ignore the small voice pleading in the back of her head.

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

For most, the day passed by relatively quickly, life flowed without bother. But for one, minutes took lifetimes and hours an eternity. There she sat, tortured and disturbed. She'd tried everything to calm her nerves, but the normal routes just weren't enough. She just couldn't shake the feeling of inevitable perdition. _Why? _She was nervous. _Why? _She was scared. _Why? _But most of all, she was uncertain. **_Why? _**

She looked at the clock resting on her nightstand, she had lost track of how many times she'd done that. _10:49. I wonder if he's asleep yet. _She took in a deep breath, momentarily calming her nerves for the task at hand. Finding her center, she expanded her mind outside of her body. A shiver flew up her back, she still wasn't used to the sensation that it always caused. An unnerving feeling brought upon from a moment when you feel most vulnerable and yet utterly aware. You leave the vessel that is your being, losing all control and all sense of self, yet gaining a deeper sense of what is. An overwhelming feeling as what is envelopes you, threatening to consume you, but fighting that feeling is not the key. No, on the contrary, she had learned a while ago you must let it engulf you; let it devour you, therefore letting it become you. That is the only way to harvest what is, the only way to decipher it. It is the only way in which for you to become your soul- self.

Coasting on the edge of reality she navigated her way through the jungle of emotions that surrounded her. Every type of color, some that escapes description, clouded her view. It was long before she realized that the colors weren't meant to be seen but felt. She glided her way down the hall feeling what wasn't meant to be seen. Hot, yet soothing. _Robin. _She continued her journey to Beast Boy's room, soaking up the emotions of the ones in her path. She turned left, then right, then another left, closing in quickly on her target. She could feel the reverberations of his psyche with every enclosing foot. Closer and closer she got until she rounded the final corner, but suddenly she was bombarded with an assortment of emotions. Blazing fire. _Anger._ Stabbing hurt. _Longing. _Damp recognition. _Helplessness. _And finally… _GAH!_

Her concentration broken, she went rapidly hurtling towards her body, unable to stop herself. Like a white water rapid she flew, landing what could be perceived as "hard" back into her mind. As if someone had threw her she went barreling off her bed and onto the floor, coated in a cold sweat. She took a few minutes to gather her senses and collect herself, having been involuntarily flung back into her mind with such force. _That…that last emotion…it was so powerful…so bright. Such shining righteous fury…incredibly intense. Whatever I felt from him must have been pure. A pure emotion…so powerful…it's almost scary. _

Regaining her composure, she picked herself from up off the floor, standing straight and looking at her reflection, still deep in thought. _With a medley of emotions that varied it has to mean he's asleep. In fact it must mean he's dreaming, that's the only state I can see someone feeling so many different things so fast. This might be a good thing. With him caught up in his dream, it will be less likely for him to detect my presence in his mind. _

She looked over at the clock. _11:15. The time is now. _Taking one last glance at her mirror, she pulled her hood up over her head, and made her way out the door. She was determined to end things tonight.

(n.n) (o.o) (X.x)

The label on the door read 'Beast Boy'. Faint snoring could be heard from inside. It was pitch black in the halls and not a soul was around. The setting was right, the timing was right. Even still, a petrified Raven stood idly in front of the door. _What is this hesitation? Is…is my hand shaking? My breath… it's short. Didn't I make up my mind? _

_**Yes.**_

_Didn't I say there was no other choice?_

_**Yes.**_

_Aren't I right?_

_**Maybe.**_

_Could I be wrong?_

_**Possibly.**_

_Could I possibly be wrong?_

_**Probably.**_

_Should I be doing this?_

_**No. **_

_What should I do if not this?_

…

_No! Now is not the time for hesitation! Not now!_

Zeal steeled, she enshrouded her being with sable and melted through his door. There was no turning back.

(n.n) (o.o) (X.x)

She was greeted with darkness. Typically this would be a blessing; she was a maiden of the dark. But this darkness, unlike the familiar darkness in her room, belied some unknown danger. She felt almost infantile, afraid of the monster that lurked in the shadows under her bed. She discarded the thought with a shake of the head, refocusing on the purpose for her entry. Upon scanning the room, she located her target. There he was, sound asleep in his bed, covers stretching all the way up to his neck. Cautiously she approached him, careful not to make a whisper of a sound. Slowly, slowly she inched towards him, his form growing with each step, her heart beating faster, causing her to take shallow bated breaths.

Finally, she reached his bedside, and her heart sank. A sliver of moonlight escaped the confines of his blinds, glistening down upon a face that showed nothing but complete and utter despair. Her heart in her throat, she looked upon him, never before seeing him in such turmoil. The one who's always laughing, always smiling. The one always trying to make others happy. She had thought that was just the way he was, a ball of infectious elation. But now, now she saw what he wanted no one to see: _A person who can't even find sanctuary in his dreams. _And she continued to look at the contradiction that lay before her. Moonlight kissing his olive skin, giving it a soft, warm texture, only to be compromised by the grimace etched onto his face. It was painful.

_That settles it. _Now more than ever, she needed to know what went on in that labyrinth of a mind of his. She wanted to know every corner of it, it became her new obsession. So, to satisfy her craving she floated in mid-air, crossing her legs to take the lotus position, and, in the lowest voice possible, utter her practiced mantra: "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos."

She closed her eyes, and then opened them, only to find herself in the last place she thought she would ever be: a playground.

(O.o) (n.n) (X.x)

All around her were kids. Some little, some bigger, but not by much. Some were on swing sets that appeared to be slightly rusted and riddled with spots of chipped paint that revealed many other layers of paint hidden beneath the surface coat. Others were playing with what appeared to be a ball that obviously hadn't been refilled with air in a while, covered with duct tape to seal up all the punctures. Still others had resorted to drawing pictures and hopscotch lines in the dirt and dust, having to reconstruct the lines with every strong gust of wind that passed by. But despite all the differences in height and activity and age, one thing was common between all of them: They were all dressed in rags. Some went without shoes, others even without pants, simply donning an oversized shirt with enough stains to go around. But, the weirdest part of all was that no one seemed to notice a gray skinned, purple haired, purple eyed teenage super hero had just suddenly appeared in the middle of them.

_This must be, one of Beast Boy's memories. But this looks like a… _**SMACK!**

Her train of thought was brought to a halt as a resounding slap was heard above even the ruckus and mayhem of little children at play. Turning her head in the direction of the source of the sound, Raven's eyes landed upon a huddled mass of kids, apparently others who inquired of the source of the noise. Straining to see over the group, Raven could decipher a total of five kids in the middle. One of which was standing dominant over a small girl, hands on his hips and a mocking grin on his face. The little girl, who Raven quickly determined to be the recipient of the resounding hit, was huddled on the floor, knees tucked in a fetal position, her hands covering her face, muffling what she decided was loud sobbing. On the far left side of the two was a pair of twins who seemed to be in cahoots with the apparent bully. They were wriggling and grunting, evidently having trouble holding someone back. She squinted her eyes to see who was the one being detained, but before she could clearly determine who he was, a small child of seven of eight years of age ran right through Raven's mid section and straight in her line of sight.

She almost screamed, unprepared to have someone run **_through_** her like a tunnel, but quickly remembered where she was. She was in Beast Boy's mind, she didn't exist, technically. She pretty much was a ghost. Recollecting herself, she brought back her attention to the spectacle in front of her. Confidently she walked to the circular pack of kids, easily seeing over them.

"Next time, when I say give me your food, you don't go get the nun, you GIVE ME YOUR FOOD!" the bully said, this time kicking her in the side. Raven grimaced at the force of the kick; _He's much bigger than her, that could have easily broken her ribs_. She whimpered in reply.

She was a small girl, couldn't be any older than 8, and had what seemed to have luxurious, clean, golden pig tails that defied her less than sterile surrounding. She wore a dusted white shirt and a torn and patched up brown skirt that ended just after her knees. On her feet where old, scratched up school girl shoes that appeared to be on their last leg. And in all this, she was quivering with fear crying openly and loudly. It only seemed to feed the monster of a boy that towered over her, soaking in her pleas with satisfaction.

"Did you hear me? Yes? NO?" His only reply was yet another whimper, she was simply to scared to formulate words.

"No? You didn't hear me? Well let's see if I can **BEAT** it into you then!"

And he started pelting her in her side again, with kick after kick after kick to her ribs. With each blow she let out a heart melting scream, crying for someone to help hear, with none of the other kids heeding her plea, but simply watching.

"**_STOP_**!" yelled a voice in desperation.

Raven snapped her head to the left, seeing for the first time the boy that was being detained by the twins. One of the twins was holding his finger, contorting his face in pain. Apparently the one being held was also being silenced, a hand over his mouth. But, seeing the girl in trouble, he did the only thing he could think of. He bit him.

"**_STOP_**! PLEASE STOP IT!"

It was then Raven took in his appearance. He had messy, moppy hair, a dirty, stretched gray shirt than went as low as his knees, and black shorts that were barley visible under his shirt and beat up sandals on his feet. But the most outstanding feature about this boy was that his hair, his eyes, and his skin…were all green.

_Beast Boy?_

The little girl took her hand away from her tear stained eyes only for a moment to see who was standing up for her.

"G…G…Garfield?" she asked in a weak voice.

_Garfield? _

"Stop hitting Kayla! You're hurting her!"

"So what, freak! What is a little vomit bag like you going to do to stop me?" He said kicking her once more; she covered her face yet again with her hands, wishing it would all end.

"I SAID **STOP** IT!"

"Stop what? **_This_**!" Tired of simply injuring her side, he moved on to a much more potent area, her head. Swiftly and with out hesitation he brought his heel down squarely in her face. She screamed even louder.

Raven once again scrunched her face, almost as if she had gotten hit herself. _How can a child act this way?_

"NO! **_KAYLA_**!" Garfield yelled, charging at the bully to stop the beating of his friend. Just as he was in arms reach, two pairs of arms reached out and pulled him back. The twins had him by the collar.

"LET ME GO! LET ME GO!"

"Did you just try to _ATTACK_ ME! Did you really JUST TRY TO **_ATTACK ME?_**!" The bully said, anger glowing in his eyes.

"NO ONE TRIES TO PUT THEIR HANDS ON ME! NO ONE! AND ILL TEACH YOU TO NEVER TRY AGAIN! STARTING WITH YOUR FRIEND!"

He brought his heel down again, harder this time. Kayla's body arched with the force of the blow, bruises started forming on her knuckles. Again and again and again, each hit harder than the last time he stomped on her face. Soon bruises turned to blood and her cries grew fainter and fainter as she slowly began slipping from the world of the conscious.

"**NO**! STOP IT! YOU'RE HURTING HER! YOU'RE **_KILLING_** HER! STOP IT RIGHT **NOW**!"

"OR **_WHAT_**?" the bully yelled back in between stomps, the heel of his shoe now covered in blood.

"Stop it…" he began in an eerily calm voice, an eerily deep one, " OR I'LL **_KILL_** YOU!" He screamed with all the malice he could conjure as he ripped free from the twins grasp with new found strength.

Raven was speechless, she just watched on as Beast Boy closed in on him with incredible speed.

Halfway to the bully she saw his fangs get longer…his fingernails grow in to claws, and a primal look fixed in his eyes. He wasn't running on thought anymore, he was running on pure hate. _He is really going to kill him_. It was then it hit her. _This must have been what I felt earlier, this moment! His mind is completely engulfed with one emotion. He's moving on pure instinct now._

The bully reared back, not expecting him to be able to retaliate, losing his balance; he was defenseless. Kayla rolled over, her back facing Raven, and appeared to be blacking out. And Garfield just got closer and closer, but as he got closer, it appeared he was turning into something else, something with four legs, with fangs. Just in front of the bully he stopped, showing everyone what he had become; a snarling wolf. The bully lay frozen in fear, not understanding what was happening but knowing it wasn't good for him. A beat past by where no one said anything and no sound dared intrude on the moment. But then, Kayla moaned a sorry, hurtful moan, and Garfield lunged. Raven closed her eyes, not wanting to see the outcome, but when no sound, no scream, no chaos hit her ears; she opened her eyes, and found a wolf hovering in mid-air, just above the bully whose arm was stretched out in a desperate attempt at protecting himself. Everyone was frozen in place. _Huh?_

She looked to her left, only to see little kids still as statues, some sustained in the air from jumping, others whose mouths were still open from yelling, still others who were captured in mid run, just like a photograph. She looked up; a bird was levitating in one place, no wings flapping. Everything was stopped. _Why?_

"Raven?" said the voice of a small boy.

Her heart stopped in its tracks. She quickly snapped her head back down to the ground, expecting to see a green wolf suspended in mid-air about to devour that young boy, only to spot a young Beast Boy, staring straight. At. Her. She blinked, and instead of observing a _young_ Beast Boy standing there looking at her, there was the present day Beast Boy, spandex and all, staring intently at her. The surroundings remained the same, the bully on his back, a terrified look on his face, and little Kayla on the ground, half unconscious along with all the kids who played as spectator in their spots. Confused and terrified at what was going on, she clasped her eyes together and shook her head, thinking that would somehow make things better. When she opened her eyes what she thought would be there had changed yet again. Now there was nothing; just her and Beast Boy, in Beast Boy's mind, surrounded by black. She was wordless, breathless, and thoughtless; all she could do was stare. They said nothing. What could or could not be perceived as minutes passed by and they said nothing. Raven with a horrified look on her face, and Beast Boy with a confused look on his face. And then he spoke.

"What are you doing here?"

She had been found out.

(n.n) (o.o) (X.x)

"You _are_ Raven right?"

"…"

"Well, you _could _be Raven; you sure ignore me like she does."

"…"

"But still, what were you doing in _that_ dream; you've never been in it before?"

"…"

"Raven?"

"…"

"Are you ok?"

"…"

"Why are you acting so weird?"

"…"

"Why do you look so terrified? Like you've been caught or someth- ," then it hit him.

"You ARE Raven aren't you?" He asked in a menacing voice. "You're the REAL Raven…AREN'T you?"

"…"

"You're in my _HEAD_** _AREN'T YOU_**!"

"I…I…"

"**_GET OUT OF MY MIND! NOW_**!" he shouted, his anger at its acme.

Like a whirlpool she was sucked through what could be perceived as the floor, down a winding vortex. Around and around she span, and like a flash she wound up in her own body. Shocked, she wasn't able to maintain her floating lotus position and landed harshly on her butt. Still dizzy from her forced expulsion, she took a few seconds to get herself together. The moment her senses were back in order she looked up quickly and fearfully only to see a fully awake, erect Beast Boy gazing at her intensely with a dangerous look in his eye. She never realized before how threatening he could be, how…angry he could become. He turned his head slightly to look at her with both eyes. But with the moonlight still shimmering through his window, it cast a shadow on half of his face, making his already scary features that much more intimidating.

"What do you think you were doing?" He said in a deep, raspy voice that didn't sound like it belonged to him.

"I…was…"

"Didn't I ask you, clearly, to never…EVER…invade my privacy by going into my mind again?"

"You…you…,"

"Yes or NO?"

"Yes…you did." She wasn't used to this, being intimidated by anyone, especially not Beast Boy.

"So, why did you do what I clearly asked you **_not to do?_**

"I…"

"Is it because you don't _respect_ me?"

"No…it's…"

"Is it because you don't think my privacy, my opinion is _valid_?"

"Beast Boy…it's not…"

"Or is it because I'm not WORTH THE TIME TO TALK TO!"

"…"

"You think I didn't notice? I _knew_ how flustered you were after I talked to you that night Raven. I _knew_ how bothered you we're the next day when you wanted to ask me some questions. I _knew _you were listening when I was singing to Starfire on that stormy night. I **_know_** how uncertain my big change has made you about me. But it still gives you no right to **_READ MY MIND_**!"

"You left me no choice!" Raven yelled back, finally able to come up with a retort.

Beast Boy got quiet after her saying that. Instead of words, he, slowly, drew the covers from off of him, revealing the fact that he was shirtless, and stood up on his two feet. Slowly he walked over towards where Raven sat on the floor, his upper body becoming more and more enshrouded with darkness with every step he took away from the moonlight. Raven found herself unconsciously backing away from him, shuffling along the floor until her back made contact with the wall. But still he came, closer and closer, deeper into the darkness until he became full surrounded by it, the only indication of his position being his glowing nocturnal eyes. Suddenly Raven's heart rate rose, perspiration forming on her forehead. _Now_ the darkness scared her, she was in the dark with a monster lurking about, a monster she created and yet a monster she doesn't know.

Closer his glowing eyes came to her until he was right on top of her, looking down. Then, unexpectantly, the pair of glowing eyes began to lower, coming down to her eye level, very close to her face. And for a tick nothing happened. Until suddenly, a pair of arms slammed on either side of Raven, locking her in place, startling her to no end. Reflexively she shut her eyes together, only to open them to a pair of squinted glowing eyes no more than centimeters from her own.

"**_HOW DID I GIVE YOU NO CHOICE_**!" Beast Boy yelled right into her face.

That was it, she was at her limit. She matched his pair of glowing eyes with her own, and they seemed to clash in their proximity.

"**_That's enough_**!"

She then used her power to plow Beast Boy into the wall on the other side of the room, smacking the blinds off, allowing lunar beams to shine through the window, showing Beast Boy plastered to the wall with obsidian, and knocking a few knick-knacks off of the shelves.

Recovered from the initial impact, Beast Boy looked upon her with defiance and detest still in his eyes.

Raven, now unimpressed by his glare, got up and brushed herself off, now feeling in control of the situation.

"You left me with no choice by your cryptic answers, your lack of information, your dodging of questions, why talk if your not going to say anything?" she rationalized once again speaking in her deadpan.

Beast Boy laughed, not a good humor laugh, but a maniacal one.

"What's so funny?" She asked, clearly missing something.

"Raven, you are the _biggest_ hypocrite I have ever crossed paths with."

"**_What?_**" she said dangerously with an edge to her voice.

"You say **_I_** answer questions cryptically. You say **_I_** dodge questions, **_I_** don't give out enough information?" He chuckled at the thought. "Raven, add in a blue cloak and a leotard and you just described yourself."

"…" she couldn't argue.

"The difference is _I_ put in the **effort** to try to get to know you. I **_try_**. But apparently you can't do the same for me. I, Beast Boy, present you with something that's not a joke, that's not ridiculous, and instead of seeing me in a different light, you see me as a _stranger_. How many times have we saved each other in battle? All that's null and void with one intellectual moment from me? Is our friendship really that **_cheap_**!"

"…"

"You can't even answer me. Perhaps all this time was a waste then! All these years! All the scoldings and being slammed into walls and humiliation and being brought down by some sarcastic stab to my ego again and again and again…I struggled through all that for **_NOTHING_**! Is that what you're telling me!"

"No…it's just easier my way." She stated simply, unable to come up with anything else.

"You think so?" He said…with a crooked, almost demented smile, concealing some other emotion.

"Yes, I do. Now stay still." She ordered as she approached him from across the room.

Soaking in what she had just said Beast Boy lowered his head in what seemed like defeat. And as Raven got halfway there, he raised his head looking her in the eyes.

"Even if you read my memories, you'll still be left with more questions than answers."

"We'll see."

"DON'T YOU LISTEN?"

"…" she ignored him, coming ever closer.

"Right…stupid question, you never do." He said self-depreciatingly. "I guess I'll just have to make you understand."

And as he said those words, he began to phase through Raven's entrapment, sliding through like it was water, all the way until he land on his own two feet. Raven couldn't believe her eyes.

"H-H-How did you…How did you do that!"

"If I were you," he began in the same deep menacing voice, "I'd be more concerned about being in the same room as an angry panther." As soon as the word panther escaped his lips, he became that very panther he spoke of, ready to pounce at the drop of a pin.

Having no time to speak, Raven charged her fists with her ebony energy, prepared to defend herself.

Just as it seemed the flood gates of Armageddon were about to bust loose, the door to Beast Boy's room slid up with a loud hiss, revealing a alert Robin.

"What's wrong," he started as he flicked on the lights using the light switch near the door, "I heard all this ruckus and-,"

Clearly confused at the scene he was beholding, Robin just stood there waiting for an explanation.

Taking the initiative, Beast Boy reverted back to human form and curtly walked past Raven, not even sparing a glance. His face was hard and looked to be strained from contained anger. He looked robin right in the fast and said clearly:

"If you still want five members on this team, I suggest you keep her away from me for a while."

He couldn't believe what he had just heard: Beast Boy, pretty much just issuing a death threat to another member of the team, Raven at that. Robin looked over to see what Raven's reaction would be. What he saw was her, staring down at the floor, her cloak enveloping her whole body with sag to her shoulders. An awkward silence followed Beast Boy's announcement, no one simply knew what to say, or had anything to say. Robin tried anyway.

"What exac-," **BWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOP!**

Robin's attempt at understanding the situation was cut off by the Titan's alarm. Robin, Raven, and Beast Boy simply looked at each other, all understanding what must be done.

**BWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOP!**

However, refusing to share the same space with Raven, he walked over to his window, opened it up, and leaped out, transforming into a bald eagle mid way his decent and soared high into the sky making his way to the offender ahead of the team.

**BWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOP!**

Just as Beast Boy left, Cyborg came barreling into the room.

"Robin…we got trouble, BIG trouble."

**BWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOP!**

Robin briefly glanced over at Raven, who seemed to ignore the world around her, deeply caught up in her thoughts.

"Yeah…I know."

**BWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOPBWOOOP!**

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YUM:) **


	7. Chapter 7 or ShaZam!

**Um...soooo...yea. It's waaaaaaay past wednesday...like..by a month. BUT! I have good reasons, i just have to think of them first. -- But seriously...things have been a bit hectic on my end so i couldn't really focus enough to finsih, but it's here now so i hope u enjoy. I'm astounded by all the reviews i got, i just hope my delay hasn't turned away most of my faithful readers. I think I'd die:s Things are heating up and please believe they're only going to get hotter. But, sadly, im at a loss as to how to type the next chapter, so it may be a while before it's released...or maybe it wont, i dont know how my brain likes to work these days. What you guys have to know is that none of the chapters i write are pre-meditated. I think as i type, i even started this whole project on a whim, no fore thought what so ever. That's why it takes a while for me to sumit regularly. But anyway, enough of the excuses, on with the story!**

**P.S. Is it me, or does anyone else think Raven was acting like a TOTAL jerk towards BB the WHOLE time in Trouble in Tokyo? I thought the movie was awesome, but all the BB hate from her really turned me off from it a little. ESPECIALLY when she commented on his looks! I was like ( ! But the whole Kareoke/ Break Dance scene had my laughing my butt of...and Robin was pretty cool (although a little too cool if you ask me.) Plus the whole StarRob thing was handle pretty well (especially when he was chugging down those mints the first time they went in for a kiss...that was funny as heck).  
**

**Now...seriously this time...on with the story ) **

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**Monday…May 8, 2006. Hour: 1417. **

** _Cinderblock_**

"Titans, GO!"

At the call the team sprung into action immediately, undertaking their roles with flawless execution and timing only made possible by years of training and teamwork.

Robin, taking the lead, withdrew his retractable bo- staff from his utility belt, swinging it briefly over his head as he charged head-on to the monster made of stone. With a push from his finely tuned legs he soared in the sky cocking his staff to the side, his arm covering a portion of his face, and with a grunt, released a horrible horizontal strike to the side of Cinderblocks skull. **_Klink!_** Went the pole as it made contact, chipping off a small chunk of the behemoth's head in the process.

"Rawrr!" Cinderblock howled as he, fueled by anger, gathered himself enough to retaliate, only to once again meet the business end of Robin's Bo-Staff.

"Ha!Ya!Ha!Ha!" Robin breathed as with flawless, almost, artistic swings he devastated Cinderblock.

"Yahhhh!" Robin yelled as he once again lunged into the air, his arms over his head, to finish him of with one, last demolishing overhead strike…or ,at least, that's what Robin wanted him to think. Purposely making the strike a tad bit slower, Robin fully expected Cinderblock to block his attack. He wasn't disappointed. Raising his massive forearm, Cinderblock absorbed the compelling force of the blow, causing dust clouds to rise from his feet from the shock of the attack. And in the brief period that Robin seemed almost weightless, as if floating in mid-air, he grinned.

"Now!" He ordered as he used his position and inertia to vault over Cinderblock's head, using his forearm as a base, blocking his view. Cinderblock tried to reach out for Robin's tumbling form, but all he was greeted with was a glowing green fist to the face.

"HA!" Starfire bellowed, as, with her fist still connected to his face, shot off three, point blank range, starbolts.

"Gahhh!" Cinderblock bawled as he stumbled back holding his face in agony. He tried frantically to rub off the ash obscuring his eyesight with his gargantuan hands, but didn't get very far as an oddly familiar green ankylosaurus swept its club-like tail under his feet, clipping him hard as he flew backwards, colliding with the ground with enough force to create a few fissures. His job done, Beast Boy transformed into a humming bird and buzzed out of the way as a dark portal opened in the sky, directly over top of Cinderblock. Just recovering from his shock, Cinderblock open his eyes to see that it was Cyborg, not Raven, who arose from the aperture, his sonic cannon ready and flaring to be shot.

"Home Delivery!" Cyborg shouted with a smirk as, without hesitation, he released a flood of sonic energy directly into the gut of Cinderblock.

"Grawrrr!" Cinderblock's body molded around the blast, as the street just cracked and cracked until…

**_SPlooossh! _**The street caved in.

"Woah…Woah…**WOAH**!" Cyborg yelped as he continued to descend, coming dangerously close the gaping whole in the street he created. But…just as he was about to enter the dark depths, he felt two soft, yet strong hands grab hold of his wrists.

"I have you friend." Starfire said confidently as she soared over to a safe spot to let him down.

"Starfire! ThankyouThankyouThankyou!"

"You are most welcomed friend, shall we return?"

"Yes, let's shall."

With that, they made their way back over to the rest of the team who were congregated around the hole.

"We are victorious, yes?" Starfire asked as she set down Cyborg.

"It sure looks that way Star, but I want to make sure he's down for the count with my own eyes."

"Don't tell me you want us to go down there too!"

Robin answered with a simple nod.

"Aw man! What did I tell you about us and going into sewers?"

"I don't know," Robin started with a roll of the eyes, "what _did _you tell me about 'us and going into sewers'?"

"I'm not surprised you didn't hear, probably had _cheap_ hair gel stuck in your ears."

"_What _was tha-," Robin began to say but was quickly cut off by a jumbo sized stone hand breaking through the concrete below him, and wrapping itself around his ankle.

"Yarr!" Cinderblock shouted as the rest of him exploded from the under earth swinging Robin over his head like a lasso until finally deciding to let him go wherever he may fall, which he coincidently seemed to be heading for the side of a concrete building.

"Robin!" Starfire lamented. Without hesitation she charged her fastest to catch up with his fleeting form as Cyborg and Beast Boy were too stunned to react. Closer and closer his ultimately frail human body raced to its demise as, to Starfire, it only seemed to be getting further and further away.

"_Oh X'hal…I'm not going to make it in time. Please…Please someone help Robin…" _she prayed silently.

But, as all hope seemed lost, a sable gateway opened just as Robin was about to collide with the structure, causing him to fly right through and appear…surprisingly, behind Starfire who, due to years of training, had the reflexes to turn around and catch him, despite her shock.

"Ugh…thanks Star," Robin said

"It was not I friend…it was Raven," she informed, smiling down on him as she held him in her arms.

Finding his cloaked teammate hovering high over the battle field, he made brief eye contact and gave a simple nod, which she returned, and all was understood. They didn't need many words between them. And, wordlessly, the couple returned their attention on the battle to see Cyborg trying his best to distract the brute as Beast Boy set up for a sneak attack. Little did he know, Raven also saw an opening for a sneak attack, so she positioned herself to deliver a blow on his unguarded right side, as Beast Boy, unbeknownst to her, set up for one on his left.

Cinderblock clasped his two hands together and raised them over his head, moving to plow the metal titan straight into the ground. Seeing the rather slow motion from a mile away, Cyborg instinctually jumped back, but was caught off guard by the fact that the attack never actually came, instead he was greeted by the howls of the crag monster being pelted with troughs of black energy.

Beast Boy, seeing that the enemy was temporarily paralyzed, but not knowing by whom, thought it was the best time for him to make his move. He sprinted straight for the behemoth in human form, deciding which animal would be the best to tackle the giant.

_Ram? No. Bull? No. Rhino? No. Triceratops? Perfect. _

With a confident smirk on his face, Beast Boy was nanoseconds from beginning the transformation, when, in that instant, he noticed something was wrong.

In a manner of what were less than seconds he observed that, though clearly overwhelmed, Cinderblock seemed to not be letting up; in fact, he appeared to be summoning some sort of inner strength and starting to repel what ever it was that he was preoccupied with. But again the force behind the attack seemed to double up in strength, and the rock monster was once more on the defensive. Seeing that he was no match for the beam of onyx, Cinderblock did something that was almost too smart of an idea for him. Using the force of the attack, he shifted his massive weight to one side, allowing the tremendous amount of energy to push only on the right side of him, rather than in the middle, spinning him like a pinwheel, putting him effectively out of the range of the blast, and placing Beast Boy smack-dab in the middle of it.

In the time it took for a person to blink, the obsidian laser raced toward the green teen, hungering for his life. In the blink of an eye, any other person would be dead. But Beast Boy was definitely not like anyone else. With reflexes that didn't seem to be real, reflexes that even Robin couldn't speak of, Beast Boy reacted. Knowing that it would be impossible for him to transform and still have time to avoid the blast, Beast Boy, without thought, pushed off with every fiber of muscle he could derive from his legs, and attempted to jump over the ray, but realized that only half of his body would make it out in time. For a brief moment, which to him seemed like minutes, time slowed down, almost as if it did specifically for him. With the blast literally only a foot away from him, and moving at incredible speeds, Beast Boy let his instincts drive him, that split-second decision making that was one of his few pillars of principles that separated him from the animals he transformed into.

Without thought, he twisted his body as hard as he could to the right. Bringing his head down, he was now looking at the world in reverse. The beam blew past his chin and he could feel the heat radiating from it. Quickly, but not quickly enough, his legs followed the course his upper body took. Not able to look back, for fear his chin be seared off, he wasn't sure whether or not his legs had clearance. Once again he relied on his instinct and spread his legs wide as the blast traveled its way down the rest of his body, burning the upper layer of his outfit from its intensity. And as he descended towards the ground, he could feel the same heat sail through the opening he made with his legs. The material that clung to his inner thigh began to cinder, but did not burn the whole way through, as the material around his stomach and his chest had. Finally, as the blast traveled its course and careened into the side of an unfortunate building, time returned to normal. Landing on his back rather hard, Beast Boy brushed it off, and rolled like a log until finally he sprung up into a crouched position with a sneer on his face. It was evident that he was far from happy.

Following the path that the beam came from, he directed his sneer to the source of it: Raven. She looked back at him with a steely expression on her face.

"Raven! What are you trying to do? You almost **killed** me!" Beast Boy scolded, gesturing wildly.

"You're the one who got in my way," Raven countered with an edge in her monotone voice.

"BB…you okay?" Cyborg asked walking up to his green pal. But Beast Boy didn't even see him…he didn't even hear him. His attention was wholly on Raven.

"How about you watch what your doing then huh! I could have been split in two by your stupid attack!"

"Yeah, I know. What a pity." She said less than enthusiastically.

"Uh guys?" Cyborg tried to ask…bewildered. It was typical for the two to argue, no it was more than that, it was almost _natural_. But never during a battle had they done so before. And never had Beast Boy had a look on his face like the one he had on now. Typically, he would wear a face of feigned anger with an underlying tinge of mirth. And Raven would say things in her cut throat, stoic manner, but there would always a glint in her eyes, just enough to know that it was all in good humor…usually. But now, now it was something different, now it border lined on hate. And it seemed that line was getting thinner and thinner with each comment.

"The only pity here is that I'm stuck on a team with someone like you."

Cyborg reeled at his statement.

Raven was quite for an agonizing moment before slowly descending to the ground; right in front of Beast Boy who followed her every movement with his eyes, and stared him straight in the face.

"Wow. Looks like now _you're_ the mind reader." She said with a dangerous look in her eyes. He gladly returned the look. Cyborg had no idea what was going on and what he should do. But, he knew if he didn't things were going to get worse, a lot worse, so he tried anyway.

"Um…" Cyborg attempted but was cut short by the cry of their leader.

"Guys! **Move**!" He warned, but it was too late.

Spotting the opportunity laid in front of him, even Cinderblock knew it wasn't one he should let pass. Running toward the nearest traffic pole, he uprooted it and headed straight for the bickering titans and Cyborg who were too caught up to even notice the barreling behemoth. With a grunt, Cinderblock reared back well behind his head, almost like a MLB player, and let it rip.

Cyborg, at the last second, turned around at his leader's call, only to see too late the sparking end of a traffic light collide straight into his "ribs". He gasped as the blow forced out all the air in his "lungs". But it didn't stop there. Like a broom Cinderblock swept up the two other titans who were now aware of their attacker, albeit overdue. Their bodies curved around the pole like napkins, each on either side of Cyborg, faces scrunched with both shock and agony. With another mighty heave Cinderblock propelled them further, off of the pole and straight through _AJ's Music Store'_s shopping window. Glass splattered everywhere, lodging themselves into the bodies of their victims, and shelves were demolished by the fleshy projectiles, sprawling Cds and Dvds all over the place.

"Guys!"

"Friends!" Robin and Starfire shouted simultaneously, rushing over to the scene.

Normally, Cinderblock would take this time to barge in and further add injury, and he tried so, but found himself almost collapsing under his own weight. Realizing that he wasn't in any condition to continue on the battle, especially against two very healthy and **very** angry titans, he turned around and, as swiftly as he could manage, made his retreat.

Robin looked over his shoulder as he ran towards his friends and teammates to see the image of a retreating Cinderblock, and gritted his teeth.

_Next time. _He thought to himself. His friend's health was more important.

As they approached the gaping hole that used to be a window, they could see a bulky mass shakily beginning to stand up.

"Cyborg!" Robin both stated and asked, inquiring his condition, the condition of the other two, and an explanation. That one word implied so much.

As they made their way through the hole, they got a better look at their friends. It wasn't pretty. Cyborg seemed to be the least damaged, sporting only a dent in his rib plate, and some large scraping to his left side. The other two were by _far_ worse off. Bruising could be seen forming around Ravens eyes, cheeks and thighs and a streak of blood running down the side of her face, some seeping into her closed eyes. Beast Boy also seemed to be developing some nasty bruises as well and a few could be seen around his stomach, due to the singed fabric. On top of that his right leg appeared to be bending at an odd angle, a very dangerous angle. As if that weren't enough, both were littered with sharp glass sticking out of their flesh, causing trickles of the red liquid to fall just about all around them, and both were unconscious. Robin's eyes narrowed with determination.

"Questions later. We need to get them to the tower. **Now**."

(o.o) (n.n) (X.x)

**Thursday, May 25. Hour- 1845**

**_ Overload_**

Two weeks. It had only been two weeks since Beast Boy had broken his leg. It was fractured in two places, a nasty break. Normally, a person, even a young person, would be laid up for no less than six months, four if they're lucky. Beast Boy was back in action in two _weeks._ Needless to say, the others we're puzzled. When asked how he could possibly be already healed, he would scratch the back of his head and simply said, "Guess I'm just a quick healer," and that would be it. Cyborg, although skeptical, let it go and was just glad his friend was back to normal. Robin, who was always the skeptic, would every now and then try to bring it up slyly in casual conversation. But ultimately he was just glad that his friend was back to normal, and his teammate was fully functional. Starfire didn't care either way, she was simply ecstatic that her friend was in good health once more.

But Raven…she didn't believe him for even a _second_. She resigned herself to the fact that she would never again believe a word that comes from his mouth. With him, there seemed to be no real distinction between truths and lies. She hadn't the mindset to believe what he says is true, or the proof that what he says is a lie. So she simply regarded him as a fictional character who donned any persona or any life story that the writer gave him. He could be or do anything he wanted. For all she cared, he wasn't real.

Even as the green boy in front of her got shocked with who knows how many volts by the electrifying evil-doer, she didn't think anything of it. For all she knew…he's retardant to electricity. Heck, for all she knows he can _shoot_ electricity. So, as bolt after bolt struck him, even though she could have put up a shield for him by now, she didn't. He'd just pull out another trick from his sleeve and show them something that no one ever thought _anyone _could do, and everything would be all hunky-dory. Who knows what crazy idea his writer had cooking up for him next?

**"Raven!"** Robin shouted at her, drawing her attention away from Beast Boy and back to him.

"What are you doing! Why are you just standing there! Help him!"

"I'm sure he can help himself." Raven said matter- of- factly.

Rather than sitting there and arguing with her, Robin leapt into action. Withdrawing three, specially marked exploding disc, Robin took aim and launched them with unwavering accuracy towards Overload. Expecting them to just be normal discs…Overload laughed.

_Don't these fools learn? Overload absorbs any type of energy. Overload invincible! Overload…huh?_

When he noticed the smoke from the discs weren't fading, but rather, we're expanding, Overload realized too late what was happening.

He was being extinguished.

Overload let out a feral growl upon his discovery, thrashing about like a loon trying to rid himself of the creeping smoke, but to no avail.

Robin took this momentary break in battle to check up on the assaulted titan.

"Beast Boy! Are you okay!" He asked frantically.

For a moment, Beast Boy just gazed at Robin. For some odd reason, his hair was a bright shade of orange, with green, rotating swirls mixed in. Also, his skin was the most appealing blue he'd ever seen, while his mask served as a stark contrast by being a very deep shade of red. What's more, there seemed to be two of them, in the exact same position, with the exact same gestures, wearing the exact same expressions.

"Dude, I never knew you could be so pretty…or that you had a twin." He raised his hand up to shake the twin's hand, but got indignant when the gesture wasn't received. "C'mon dude, don't leave me hangin'!" He said with a slur.

Robin just stared at his green teammate. Then it hit him.

_Being hit with constant electrical surges must have disrupted the charges in his brain. That's probably why his eyesight is all messed up now._

At his revelation, Robin took hold of both Beast Boy's shoulders and began to shake him.

"Beast Boy! Beast Boy snap out of it!"

"Snap what? Ginger snaps? I like ginger snaps…"

"**BeastBoy**!"

Finally, Robin had caught his attention. Slowly his eyes refocused.

"Robin?"

Robin let a sigh of relief when he saw that Beast Boy was going to be okay. He was about to help him up to his feet, when suddenly Beast Boy grabbed him by the arm with more strength than Robin thought he had. Then, without warning, he threw him away, diving with him right after. Before any protest could be made, an especially bright, especially vicious bolt of electricity eviscerated the exact same spot they had just dove away from.

Obviously, this brought all the attention back on Overload.

Robin's creeping gas was still quickly devouring the villain, who was now having some trouble with the debris Raven was hurling at him. Normally, he would easily be able to either repel or dodge or even destroy anything she threw at him, but with the extinguishing gas quickly taking over him, he was weakened considerably. Cyborg and Starfire were trying there best to contribute to the battle, but there was little they could do with this monster. Considering that they're more potent attacks involve a type of energy, her starbolts and his sonic cannon, they would do nothing but strengthen the fiend. Cyborg especially was susceptible to Overload. Considering that his life force relies off of a current of electricity, any contact with a source of high voltage, particularly an entity comprised entirely of it, would cause him to short circuit. So they did the best they could, creating diversions and the sort for the ones that could actually attack with out recourse. But right now Raven was the only on attacking. She didn't have her heart in the battle. In the past, she was known to dispatch this particular fiend single handedly, without too much effort. Most considered her to be, arguably, the most powerful of the five, in sheer force. So it made one wonder why she was taking her time about it on this particular occasion.

_Looks like he's back to normal. Good, let's see what other tricks he has._

Feigning that she miscalculated in one of her attacks, she left herself wide open for a counterattack, which Overload took without hesitation. Zapping her with a small bolt, she flew back into a wall of cardboard boxes.

_That last attack was weak; this battle will be over soon. _

So, while hiding herself in a pile of cardboard, she pretended to be incapacitated as she watched to see what else her green mystery had in store for her.

She never had the chance.

With surprising inspiration, Overload figured to finish the indigo-clad titan. With another weak, but effective, bolt, he set ablaze the mass of boxes that encased Raven, the fire spreading at a rapid pace. She hadn't foreseen this.

"Raven!" Cyborg and Starfire shouted at the same time, rushing over to the fiery scene before their friend was burned alive. Robin, eyes still on Overload, told Beast Boy, "Beast Boy, help Raven! I'll handle Overload."

"Help her with what? She can phase through solid objects, remember?" Beast Boy snappily said.

"Well then help with the fire, the whole warehouse will burn down at this rate!"

"Those two can handle it." Beast Boy retorted, eyes now on Robin.

"I'm not _asking_ you, I'm **ordering **you!" Robin forcefully stated, eyes now on Beast Boy.

But, as their eyes locked, they heard a loud crackling noise, and, assuming that it was yet another one of Overloads attacks, they both jumped back reflexively, directing their eyes back to the source of the attack, only to find no one there.

Rather, near an outlet there was a mound of what resembled soap lather that was beginning to dissipate. Robin knew what had happened, and with a low growl of a voice simply made the statement, "He got away." With any other villain, Robin would have quickly given chase, but, with a person who can travel through electric lines at the _speed _of electricity, it was a rather impossible deed.

Placing duty over frustration, Robin sharply turned around, cape fluttering from the action, and moved to help with the expunging of the fire.

With out a word, Beast Boy knew he was supposed to follow. They both then noticed that Raven had indeed freed herself from her predicament and was now helping with the inferno. Seeing that the last two had joined them, Cyborg raised an inquisitive brow.

"Yo! What happened to Mr. Glowstick?"

Robin decided not to answer, his scowl gaining intensity as he put more effort in his work to rid himself of the fact that… "He got away." Beast Boy answered for them.

Starfire, sensing her leader's distress, broke away from her duty and landed next to him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"Do not worry. I am sure we will be victorious next time!" She said with an infectiously bright smile, even in the presence of a roaring fire.

She didn't know how wrong she would be.

**Tuesday, June 6, 2006 – Hour: 0816**

**_Johnny Rancid_**

"Later losers! **Woo Hoo Hoo Hoo**!" Johnny taunted as he pulled off on his motorcycle with a screech, sack of money in tow. A battered Cyborg could only glare at the gothic villain as he rode off to the horizon. The team had never been bested by Johnny before, so it was needless to say that Robin was less than happy.

"Next time Robin, I am sure of it." Starfire exclaimed, trying to suppress her own disappointment.

**Friday, June 9. 2006- Hour: 0955**

** _Mumbo Jumbo_**

"And now it is time for the great and magnificent Mumbo Jumbo to make his exit, stage left! Ta Ta Titans! HA HA HA HA!" He vanished in a storm of smoke and glitter.

Maybe Starfire would have offered a word of condolence, if she wasn't bound and gagged by an assortment of colorful handkerchiefs.

**Wednesday, June 21, 2006- Hour: 1241**

** _Le Blanc_**

"Ha Ha Ha! Ze Titans are no match for ze inveencible Le Blanc! Au revoir lozears! Bwa Ha Ha Ha!"

Starfire couldn't think of anything. There wasn't anything to be said. The Titans had lost, not to Slade, not to the Hive, Not even to Control Freak. The Titans had lost…to _Le Blanc_…arguably the lamest villain in Jump City. Wordlessly, the team turned back defeated, back to Titans Tower.

**Wednesday, June 21, 2006- Hour: 1315**

** _Titans Tower_**

To say the air was thick was an understatement. Thick simply didn't begin to describe the kind of atmosphere that engulfed every extremity of the tower. No, you'd be much closer in the description if it was said that the air was _suffocating_ in its concretion. Shoulders were tense, eyes were lulled, and spirits were at an all time low. But oddly enough the tense air surrounding the Titans, who were congregated in the common room, was also charged with… eeriness. The kind of feeling you only experience when everyone is thinking the same thing, but no one wants to put it in words, no one wants to be the bringer of bad news. Unfortunately, Robin didn't have that luxury of choice. He was the leader, he does what needs to get done, and right now, something needed to be done. Desperately.

Slowly, groggily, Robin raised his head up, which he had bowed deep in thought, to look upon his team, or more pointedly, what was left of them. It was then he noticed how each of his teammates was taking things in such varied ways. Starfire, being Starfire, had an expression on her face that clearly read 'distressed'. She was in the kitchen trying to find something to keep her mind off of things, probably to cook. But what was odd was that she was _walking_ to the different appliances. Normally she would float from place to place with a big smile on her face, but he guessed the happiness just wasn't there now to tap into. Even the bright sheen from her long auburn locks seemed to be a little lackluster. It hurt Robin to see her like that, so unhappy.

And then there was Cyborg, busying himself with some contraption of his own creation on the kitchen table. Having half a face, much couldn't be read from the metal man's expression. Rather, he wholly involved him self with the construction of his device. One would think that this meant that he was doing alright with their situation, but Robin knew better. It was only when he was truly upset that he would delve that deep into his gadgets. It's almost as if, temporarily, he tries to forget that he's half human, relying on his "emotionless" robotic half to get him through.

Robin could see that Raven too was less than her normal self. He expected her to handle things best, maybe even more so than himself, but sadly it wasn't the case. She was on the far side of the room, near the door in the middle of the floor, trying her best to meditate. Small dots of sweat formed on her forehead, a sign of her effort to concentrate, and, although still kempt, her hair was in slight disarray, a few strands sticking out here and there. For any other person, slightly unkempt hair was no big thing, but with Raven, in was unheard of. She took immaculate care of her violet strands, he couldn't remember a time when her hair wasn't picturesque. It was a large sign of what her mind was preoccupied with.

And then there was Beast Boy. He puzzled Robin more so than anyone else. Always the optimist, he would typically be up and about trying his best to cheer everyone up. Although in the end only making himself a nuisance, what with his lame jokes and all, he did prove to make the team lighten up a little bit, at the very least get their minds of off their problems. But now, the Beast Boy in front of him was anything but the Beast Boy Robin had envisioned. Eyes lulled, mouth caught in a tight, perpetual frown, and the signs of bags developing under his eyes, he _definitely _wasn't the Beast Boy he knew. He just sat there, back to all of his friends, hopefully not intentionally, staring out of the window and over the ocean. There was no fidgeting, just a solid, stoic, stare. Robin didn't know what could cause such a turn of attitude in his green teammate, but he knew it would have to wait for the moment. Right now, he had to prevent the implosion of the team he worked _hard _to put, and keep, together.

A wry smile crept up on his lips as he, for the first time in hours, broke the silence that laced the room.

"Le Blanc… huh…" He said as more of a statement than a question in a tired, raspy voice.

Cyborg stopped his screwdriver in mid turn as he heard his words, but didn't take his eyes away from his project. Starfire put down the potato peeler she had in her grasp and gazed intently at it. Raven slowly opened her eyes only to stop halfway, half out of exhaustion, half out of shame. And Beast Boy just sat there and stared, as if he hadn't heard a thing.

"Yeah…that's pretty lame…" Robin answered himself, voicing the thought that ran through everyone's mind at the mention of the French "villain".

He pushed himself up to a standing position, noting the soreness in his back from leaning against the edge of the island counter. With a sigh he ran his fingers through his perfectly slicked raven hair, somehow it managing to keep its shape. He mulled over his next words.

Just before he brought himself to speak, Beast Boy cut in, somewhat startling the rest. He hadn't spoken the entire time.

"Everyone has their ruts." He voiced, his focus still outside of the tower and scoped onto the crashing waves that both pelted and caressed the shore to their island. Faintly he could see the reflections of his teammates off of the glass of the window. Faintly he could see Robin's expression turn from one of mild surprise to one of heated disagreement. _Shoulda kept my mouth shut,_ he thought, faintly.

"_We're _not everyone! We're the Titans, we can't have **_ruts!_**"

"We'll not _everyone_ can be the picture of perfection, **_Robin_**." Beast Boy replied more harshly than he intended. He was in no mood.

"Do you know what happens when we have one of these…_"ruts"? _Huh, _do_ you! **Hundreds** of people get hurt, and the city takes on **Millions **of dollars in property damages! _Athletes _have ruts. _Artists_ have ruts. Us? We can't afford ruts, we don't... _have _ruts."

"Oh? And what do you call this?"

"Neglect."

"What?" Beast Boy asked, not sure on what he meant, along with the rest of the team.

"You guys are neglecting practices, teamwork, and most of all duty."

It was Beast Boy's turn to change expression now, along with the rest of the team.

"There's _no way _I'm neglecting **_anything_**, _especially_ my duty. Rut or no rut, I know that always comes first, and I'm **not** going to stand here and be told different!"

"Yeah, Man! If anything the problem isn't _us_, it's _you_!" Cyborg attacked.

"**_Excuse me?_**" Robin said in a dangerously low voice.

"What's a team without a leader? Huh? If there's a problem with anything it's your leadership! Don't go pegging this thing on us!"

It was Starfire who jumped in now.

"Robin is a most competent leader! Perhaps he is right! Perhaps _we _are the ones at fault!" She retorted in defense.

"Defend him if you want, but I'm **_sure as heck_** ain't gonna sit here and swallow this. He's out there, making bad calls, got bad priorities, getting all hot headed, and your telling me it's _everyone else's _fault, Psh. Please!" Cyborg snapped.

"_Bad Calls_! I made the best decisions I could at the time with what I had!"

"Yes, he is most correct!"

"Oh yeah, then how do you explain why we're sitting here and having this argument right now! Eh! Cause it **_obviously _**isn't because things are going "swell"."

"You think you can do a better job? Eh Tin man? Mr. **Titans East** couldn't even keep it together two days before we had to come in and bail your sorry butt out!"

Cyborg was fuming now; he had hit a sore spot.

"Robin…perhaps you shouldn't have said that…" Starfire informed.

Cyborg was about to ignite Armageddon when Raven cut in.

"Enough! This isn't going to accomplish anything."

Beast Boy's head snapped so hard one would think it was made out of rubber.

"_Accomplish?_ The only thing _you've _tried to accomplish is splitting me in two, Lil' Miss Hacksaw."

"Grow-up Beast Boy, accidents happen, learn to live with it."

"Forget _that_, I'm having a hard enough time learning to live with _you!"_

Things we're getting a little hot and the other three could feel it.

"Here let me help you. Three easy things to remember: Stay out of my way, Don't talk to me, and Shut up."

"Well since we're sharing and all, let me help you too. I've only got two rules, so pay attention to what I'm saying... for _once_.** 1)** Everything **you **just said and **2)** No more trying to send me to your "daddy"."

If things were getting hot before, it had all changed now. Now things we're really, really cold. A chill that seeps into your bones and warns you of incoming doom. One that just screams, 'get out of there you fool, do you **want** to die!' Beast Boy had just broken the biggest Taboo in the house. Words can only _vaguely_ describe the consequences of such an action.

Slowly, painfully so, a sneer so strong and so vicious etched itself onto her features. Her canines were plain in view and her eyes hummed its white shade, threatening to end so many lives. If death had a face, it'd be a good impersonation of it. Any sane person would know it's time to high tail it out of there, wet pants and everything. But what Beast Boy was doing was anything but sane. He stared her down, like staring Hades in the eyes. His sneer both matched and dwarfed hers, him having the clear supremacy in canine length. And though his eyes didn't glow, they shined with challenge and determination unlike ever seen from him before. It was like he wanted this, like he was taunting the devil to make a move.

The air was too thick to chance a breath, less you draw the wrath of either of the two behemoths, so the other three remained quite, both curious and frightened. Just before the floodgates of Gahenna poured forth, the oddest thing broke the tension in the room.

A simple, raspy cough.

Dumbfounded by the sound, the two combatants we forced to ceasefire, curiosity taking the both of them. All five pairs of eyes scanned the room until ,simultaneously, all five landed onto the wall sized video monitor that dominated a section of the room.

If you listened closely, you could hear what would be the beginnings of a heart attack coming from Robin. **Ba Thumpa Thump Thump Thump**…faster and faster. Because on the screen was none other but his mentor and "father", The Dark Knight, Batman, and behind him, The Man of Steel, Superman. Two Legendary Powerhouses at once, observing **his **team at a less than glorious moment. **Ba Thumpa Thump Thump**…faster and faster…

"We need to talk. **Now**."


	8. Chapter 8

Well, it was a long time comming, but its finally here. Thanks for waiting so paitiently. Enjoy D

**  
P.S.** Good news is my bro is finally married. Now i gots 4 wonderful sisters in law. What a shocker O.o

* * *

** RAVEN**

* * *

The room was dark, its only light source a shanty ceiling fixture that dangled precariously form a single cord. And as she sat in the stiff wooden chair that hurt her back and wobbled to and fro from its uneven legs, she could only help but to the think that things would be better had the light not been there at all. Ignoring her discomfort, she looked across the desk to the man who put her in such a distasteful position. His gaze was intense. Had she been a lesser person perhaps she would have looked away. Resigning herself not to surrender the silent warfare of wills she steadied her nerves. He would not win.

He shifted a little in his seat, cracking his unsettled lower vertebrae into submission. Raven couldn't help but smirk, taking pleasure in the fact he wasn't much more comfortable than she; a small victory. Seemingly taking her gesture as a signal, he decided to speak.

"Raven Roth: 16 years of age. Height: 5'3". Weight: 118 lbs-,"a frown found its way to her face, "- Abilities: Telekinesis, Empathy, Mind Reading, and the ability to go intangible, among other things. 2nd member to join the Titans."

He paused, scratching his chin, his eyes void of pupils bore deeply into her violet orbs. She sighed, crossing her ashen legs over one another with a slight roll of the eyes. The air grew thick once more; the only sound the hum of the bulb which glowed vigorously to fend off the darkness. Raven eyes wondered over the padded walls apathetically, vaguely wondering how the others were fending.

"It's just me and you, Raven."

Elastically her head snapped towards her adversary, eyes radiating with bewilderment. He wore a cool smirk on his face. Brushing her surprise away, she refocused her energy back into the distaste she held for the man. It had to simply be a coincidence. She was the mind reader around here. She settled back into the comfortable void of her emotions and regarded the man carefully. He intertwined his fingers, constructing a bed for his broad chin. It was obvious to her he wanted her to speak.

"Batman, the Dark Knight. Height: Unknown. Weight: Unknown. Abilities: Including but not limited to stalking, ridicules intimidation tactics, and a master of annoyance."

If there was any falter in his poise, Raven didn't see it.

"Cute." He leaned forward out of the shadow, the light revealing the small stubble that sprinkled his jaw. As if a trick of the light, his shoulders appeared to Raven as to have grown.

"You know why you're here."

"Do I? That's news to me."

His steely gaze grew even more oppressive.

"Don't waste my time Raven."

"Well you know what they say," She began with a sigh, "'do unto others as you want done unto you.'"

She looked over and saw his jaw clenched tightly in an attempt to rain in his temper. She was starting to get to him, she was enjoying it.

With short words and clenched teeth he seethed out, "You'll find I don't have much patience for children."

Her attention shifted away from him, she pretended to find a much more interesting subject pasted on the wall.

"Maybe if I was one of the purse-grabbing thugs you so like to hunt down, I'd be a little intimidated."

A pulse of surprise coursed through her veins by the dubious smirk that crawled onto his face. She was expecting a much more heated response.

"Little girl, if you think I'm trying to be intimidating right now, you're in for a very, very pleasant surprise."

She refused to show it. Not a blink of an eye, not a missed breath, not a twitch of the fingers. But as he stood, his face devoured by the darkness, his white eyes lancing straight through her, as the light reflected off his broad chest, highlighting the symbol his name suggests, even though she refused to demonstrate it, even if by the most minute amount, she was frightened.

** CYBORG **

* * *

**  
**"I don't see what the problem here is. These kinds of things just…happen, y'know?" 

"No, these kinds of things _don't _happen, "_**y'know**_?"

His red mechanical eye glowed with his frustration. He checked his bio stats. Heart rate was up to 160 bps and blood pressure exceeding normal. His vital signs confirmed it. He was getting pissed. He trained his human eye to the face of his interrogator. Red met green as the two clashed for dominancy.

"This isn't grade school kid, when you mess up, people **die**. Homes are lost, lives _ruined_; and why? Because you're in a funk? A _slump_? **Wake up**."

Cyborg looked at him long and hard. His voice reminded him of an old pick-up he saw not too long ago, a fixer upper; deep and guttural, laced with age and experience. Every word and syllable was a head turner, demanding attention and direct obedience. Cyborg laughed inwardly at the irony of the moment. Any other day and he would be drooling and asking for an autograph. He smirked as he remembered how excited he was even up to the point of being locked into the room with him. But right now he would give anything to lay him out flat.

"I'm not perfect, we're not perfect. You can't expect perfection, not even from yourself."

"Oh?"

A manila folder slammed onto the desk, its contents spewing from their container. Suddenly, an ethereal green aura surrounded three distinct photos, suspending them in midair. Without a thought his robotic eye magnified the images made apparent to him.

A scene riddled with chaos. The sun was high, reflecting off the windows as fire danced without inhibition and rubble decorated the streets. Cyborg winced as the day played out in his mind with unfortunate detail.

"Tuesday May 18. Hour: 1450. Scenario: Cardiac on a rampage, motives unknown," His steely green eyes caught Cyborg's own. "Do you remember that day?"

Remember? He could tell him how many clouds were in the sky. Everything was recorded and stored away. There were times when he hated what he was, detesting his form vehemently. But as he diverted his eyes, he could hardly think of a time he wished to be anyone one else more passionately than now.

"Yeah. We lost."

"No you didn't just lose. In this business you don't just lose, kid."

His temper flared. He reined it in; now was not the time for vanity.

"What are you saying?"

"Let me spell it out to you: $35,000 in property damage, 23 injured and 1 fatality. 15 insurance claims for homes with damages incurred that are beyond repair. 13 insurance claims granted reimbursement. 1 family of 6 left homeless and 1 retired war vet admitted to a retirement home."

He felt nauseas. A sledge hammer slammed into his stomach and reality surged his being. Cyborg reeled as thoughts flooded through him. How could he be so blind? So naive? How did it not translate until just now? Throughout his epiphany, the cold, searing gaze continued to peer right into him.

"Understand now?"

Silence was his response.

"Alright then, let's continue." He pulled out another file.

"Monday, June 13. Hour: 1944. Scenario: X caught in the act of robbing a museum. Ring a bell?"

He shook his head. He filtered his torrent of emotions into flow. He needed to stay calm, no matter how bad it got, he needed to stay calm.

"We got him."

"Did you?"

He flinched.

"Okay, he got away, but he didn't take anything, we made sure of that."

"You're right. He didn't take anything. But you guys sure didn't win."

"You're not making any sense."

A venomous glare met his and he froze in place, vaguely wondering if there was any difference in this man and medusa. His eyes bore the glint of a predator veiled in ebony, glowing green orbs set distinctly onto him; waiting, wondering how he was going to devour him.

"Then let me **clarify**. A museum report stating eight items lost in the preceding confrontation: Four emperor Ming vases shattered beyond repair. Ancient Viking Ship mast fragments scorched to oblivion. Medieval tapestry torn with what is assumed to be lion claws. And finally two ancient Egyptian pots report melted with an energy whose resonance is reported not native to earth. Reported loss: an estimated nine million two hundred thousand dollars." The Green Lantern looked up from the report. "Does that sound like a '_win_' to you?"

His hand twitched, itching to hit this man. An ache in his back throbbed as his eyes searched for an exit in through the darkness. This man was touching all the wrong buttons and he knew it wasn't before long his restraints faltered. He felt a chill at the icy glare broadcast to him as he brought his focus back to his once idol. Suddenly, he was hit with a revelation. It wasn't the Lantern's fault all this happened; it was his. It was _his _villains that got away, _his _own two fists that caused the damage. There was no one to blame, but himself. These were consequences of his carelessness. He remembered those days in the Tower, the celebrations they'd have after a hard day's win. He felt queasy. How many people suffered on his behalf as he ate waffles? All those stray shots, all those thrown punches. He reeled; what has he been doing? The Green Lantern husky words would say with him forever.

"Pay attention, **boy**. This isn't recess. This is reality. Face up to it."

**BEAST BOY**

* * *

**"**Do you…like your team?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

"Do you think you work together well?"

"We get things done, so yeah, why not?"

"Do you think you've worked well as of late?"

"We could do better."

Superman's eyebrows furrowed. There was something about this kid he just couldn't peg. He could tell he wasn't lying, he didn't hear his heart rate fluctuate. Oddly though, even though he could physically tell he wasn't lying, a sense of honesty seemed missing from his reply. He looked him over. His forest green eyes gave off an unconcerned, almost bored, glean. He was slouching in his chair, his arm draped over the back. Everything about him shouted that he just wasn't interested in what was happening.

"You know why you're here, right?"

"I can guess."

Superman shot him a glare.

"You're evaluating us."

"So then, you know what's at stake."

"Yeah."

"Despite that, you seemed relaxed."

"I'm just a relaxed kind of guy. Easy Breezy," he said with a smirk.

"Easy Breezy?"

"My motto."

He crossed his arms.

"Not a very good motto, for a person of your occupation."

It was odd, for some reason he took some satisfaction from the frown the green boy's face. The kid was a harder nut to crack then he thought. His records showed that he was very adamant to others about how he felt; a billboard of emotions. But now, he thought he was almost as hard to read as Batman. For some reason he reminded him of a magician he once saw with his maw and paw. Glitter and sparks would dance across the stage, the audience enamored as he put on an extravagant show. Wild expressions and gestures pasted to his figure, he would go about one illusion after another. He was young back then and would clap and wonder, '_how did he do it_?' But now he knew. Every time a special effect would dazzle the crowd, every glitter and every piece of confetti, every distracting hand gesture, the magician would secretly go about his plan. Hiding behind wonder and amusement, he would flawlessly execute his schemes, no one the wiser. Everyone would laugh, and everyone would clap, but when the show ended, not one of them knew the tricks of the magician, and the magician would put on another show where everyone watched, but no one understands.

"Your teammates follow that mantra too?"

"Not exactly."

"That must cause some problems then; differences in opinion maybe?"

"From time to time. It happens; we're all very different people. It must be the same for you."

He smirked. The kid's a little too young to try and flip the script.

"Maybe, but this isn't about me, it's about you."

Beast Boy shrugged. "I guess it is."

He wasn't making any headway. Directly asking the boy didn't seem to be the best course of action. Recouping, he tried a more personal approach.

"Robin doesn't really fit the bill, now that I think about it. He's about as easy breezy as a rock."

A small chuckle escaped Beast Boy's lips. Perfect.

"I wonder what the rest of them think," he watched him closely, "…about that outlook of yours." He noticed his face steel. He could see the determination in his eyes. He was trying not to let anything show. Superman knew it was going to take a little more prodding.

"Starfire…Cyborg…" Beast Boy smirked, and it looked to him he was revisiting fond memories, "…Raven?" There it was… an almost indistinguishable twitch. Where once a relaxed smirk was, now lay a forced one. He knew had he not been so intently focused, he would have missed it entirely. How often did this boy hide his emotions? He was far too good at it.

Enlarging, Superman continued. "She's a bit different, isn't she?"

"That's one way of putting it."

"You two must butt heads quite a bit."

"It's a give-in"

"How often would you say it happens?"

"I couldn't tell you."

"Hard time remembering?"Superman asked a little confused.

"No, hard time counting that high." Superman hid his shocked expression. He chose to glare instead. It was time to show him he wasn't playing.

"Disagreements or not, petty squabbles always take a back seat to duty. You leave the drama out of the workplace. Is that understood?" He had to admit, the boy had a pretty fierce scowl on his face.

"Are you saying you think I don't take my job _seriously_?"

"Records don't lie."

"Screw what the freaking records say! I do my job no matter **what**! And _a piece of paper_ **isn't **going to tell me otherwise!"

"Doing your job and doing your job well are two very different things, young man. And you cannot do your job well, if your team isn't working well together. So I suggest whatever spat you and Raven are having end as soon as possible."

"Who says Raven and I are having a problem?"

"I can tell by the way your acting. Look how defensive you're getting."

"Even if we are having a problem, we wouldn't let it interfere with our duties. Give us some credit."

"So, there **is** a problem between you two." Beast Boy flinched. A slip of the tongue brought on by being caught up in the moment. He collected himself and his expression hardened. He was on guard now. "What exactly would it be, this problem of yours?"

He was met with stony silence, it was almost oppressive. The seconds passed by with pause and Beast Boy hadn't budged an inch. He wasn't even looking at him, refusing eye contact. Superman was beginning to lose his patience with the boy. He was a hero, not a baby-sitter.

"I asked you a question." He said with an edge. "I expect an answer…now."

Still not looking at him Beast Boy responded, "This isn't something you need to know. It's not your problem."

"I'm here aren't I? I'm sitting right here, with you, wasting precious amounts of my time. Do you think, if it _didn't_ concern me, I'd be here bothering to sooth your ego? Do you think I enjoy having to sit here and baby you; wiping your little nose and powdering you little butt? Right now, it **is** my problem. Now answer the question." If there was any change in his expression, Superman didn't see it.

"This isn't some little argument you know. I didn't take her favorite CD, she didn't eat my last ice pop, if that's what you were thinking. This is definitely not that trivial." He sighed. "Either way, we're both too professional to let it hinder our work."

Superman was starting to get really perturbed. Trying to control his temper he further spoke. "Maybe you think you're both professionals. Maybe you **think** you're both handling your situation in a professional way, but on another level, subconsciously, there are things you can't control; an invisible force that you aren't actively giving attention to, but it's still there, a dampener on you work. And it will stay there. It will stay there and fester and grow until you and her resolve things."

"And how exactly can you prove that's true?" He said with a dull voice.

That was it. He had had it. In his vexation he pounded his legendary fist into the make shift fold-out table. The cheap metal screeched as it crumbled in a pathetic heap. Beast Boy was shocked, he could see it in his eyes, but his body didn't move an inch. Superman voice boomed.

"Prove? You seem to be confused. **I**don't have to prove anything! **You're** the one with something to prove! And if you can't prove to us that your team is still able to function properly, than you can consider the Teen Titans a page in the history books."

The silence that followed was suffocating. He had to give Beast Boy credit. He expected him to go off the handle, to be shocked, anything. But all that Beast Boy did was blink, he was good, he'd admit that; but whether he was good or he wasn't didn't matter. All that mattered was what he did now.

In a strained cool voice, Beast Boy asked, "And how exactly do we do that?" Just then a muffled buzzer sounded. Superman squinted, to him it sounded like a gunshot went off. He looked over at Beast Boy. He was squinting too.

Superman smirked. "Looks like you're about to find out."

**(X.x)(O.o)(n.n)**

The Tower was huge. Its corridors we like a labyrinth and had he not been escorted he would have easily been lost. It had a sterile look and he thought it resembled a mix between a hospital and factory. The walls were liberal with their windows. They were large panels that gave the view justice. The Earth had a blue halo cresting just along the edges as it hovers in the foreground of stars innumerable and its preciousness manifest to the universe. He was glad he could see it; the perspective was a reminder of what he protected. A nameless woman almost bumped into him, mumbling an apology as she went about her way, effectively disrupting his musings. As he became more aware of his surroundings he noticed the halls were littered with people going about some business or another.

He hadn't known there were other people in the tower besides Super heroes. But as he looked he saw everyday men and women in uniforms doing anything from rewiring to sweeping floors. He figured the commute muse be insane. It made sense though. It must be kind of hard to save the world and maintain things at the same time. Maybe when he got back he'd ask Robin to hire a janitor for they're tower.

Beast Boy looked up over his head. There was another whole mass of people flying around, tending to one thing or another, a cluster of spandex and flamboyant clothing. Suddenly he didn't feel so bad about wearing purple. He noticed despite the volume of people there was no pause or stutter in the tide. It looked to him like there was some unspoken set of traffic rules. There was a pattern to the flow. An unknown felling washed over him as he was slightly overwhelmed to be surrounded by so many powerful people at one time. Somewhere down the line he forgot there was more out there than just his team. He noticed he didn't see anyone he recognized in the shroud of people. He figured all the head- liners were out taking down some bad guy or something.

"I can't believe this."

Beast Boy was startled out of his thoughts. He'd forgotten he wasn't by himself in all his musings. His escort was holding her silence and looked a little disgruntled so he entertained himself otherwise. Living with Raven for so long, he could tell when someone wanted to be alone.

"I can-**not **be-**lieve** this! Why do **I **have to do this?!"

Beast Boy watched as the girl waved her staff in frustration. This was the first time he gave a good look at her. She looked a little older than him. Her platinum blonde hair waved frantically in her ranting as she gestured in her Star Spangled costume.

"They wouldn't make **Supergirl** do this kind of thing! I'm a hero! Not a _Maid_!"

"Are you talking to me…or yourself? Cause otherwise I can leave you to your conversation." They halted they're march as she turned a stern baby blue eye on him, her hair flitting sharply.

"Hey toddler. Mind just following and keeping your mouth shut?"

An amused grin formed on his lips. "_Toddler_? What are you, like 9 months older than me or something?"

"And?"

"So, how do you think you can get away with calling me a toddler, _toddler_?"

Her eyes narrowed. Beast Boy was enjoying this. "Listen Green Boy-"

"- _Beast _Boy."

"Whatever. I'm playing in the big leagues, ok? So taking sandlot heroes like _you_ is more than a little beneath me. Understand?"

"Aren't you like always teamed up with your Dad too?" He added, like he hadn't even heard what she said. Her eyes took a dangerous glint as she about-faced with surprising speed. She marched on without warning and Beast Boy jogged lest he be left behind. He guessed the conversation was over.

After a very _brisk _walk he found himself in front of a very normal looking door.

"Door.Button.Open._**Bye**_." That was all she said as she hastily exited. He supposed she didn't want anything further to do with them. It's a shame too; he was just starting to like her. Following her "detailed" instructions, he pressed the button.

**(O.o)(X.x)(n.n)**

She was worn out. It was hard to believe, but she was utterly worn out. She may have the stamina to fly to her home planet or lift a few hundred buses, but she was absolutely worn out. She couldn't even muster the will to fly. She had faced countless villains and over come near death situations more times than she'd like to remember, but she gladly relive all of it if just to skip this day altogether.

She rubbed her sagging eye. She had been excited to arrive to the Tower she had so hoped to visit one day. She had been so determined to makes friends of all of her idols. But the situation was made depressingly clear to her. She could lose _all_ her friends. For **good**. With that realization came the weight. It anchored her feet and her hopes. The arches of her feet throbbed, but she ignored them. She hadn't known her boots were so uncomfortable; she hardly ever actually walked in them. The trip to the cell had been tough on her, physically and emotionally, she was in torment, and she was a wreck. Despite the circumstances, she tried to remain optimistic.

She thought maybe things would be better once she was reunited with her friends. Surely they would lighten her mood. Surely being with her friends would makes things better, less hopeless. That's what friends were for. So it was with high hopes she pressed the button to the room where her friends were waiting. Besides herself she plastered a smile to her features. But it evaporated as a flood of despair devoured every part of her. There were no smiling faces, no straight shoulders or puckered upper lips. Only anguish. They spared a fleeting glance at her.

"Hey Star."

Robin was the only one to speak; the others couldn't even be bothered. They were engrossed in their own dejected thoughts. Despite things, Starfire was still grateful for his kindness. So it was now, as she sits beside Robin with her friends, she tried her best to maintain. She couldn't be happy or even pretend, not even for their sakes, and she felt bad for it. But at least she could maintain. Even that wouldn't be possible were it simply for herself. It was for her friends, and if that got to be insufficient, than she did it for Robin. Out of everybody, she knew he was taking it the hardest. It's the leader that gets the blame when a team fails. It was the leader that was responsible. And ultimately it was the leader that gets punished. She looked at the crease that seemed drawn on his forehead. Gently she laid her soft hand on his. Stiffly his eyes focused on hers. But she knew that wasn't the reason he was so distressed. Robin wasn't selfish. He was worried for everyone else. He would take all the blame, if only to save his team. Her eyes softened and she began to tear up. He gripped her hand gingerly.

"It shall be okay." Her voice was soft and weathered.

A bittersweet smile curled up not only his face, but the face of her friends as well. And one found its way on hers as well as tears slipped down her cheeks. And suddenly the 8X9 room with only a long uncomfortable metallic bench and dim fluorescent lights didn't seem so small, so glum. Suddenly it felt like she was surrounded by family, and she was warm. It was then the door opened for its final time, revealing to her the last member of her family.

**(O.o)(X.x)(n.n)**

He strolled in the room. His hands were in his pockets as he plopped down next to her in a huff. He was on her cloak; it was tugging slightly on her neck. She decided to let it slide.

"Yo." It was all he said.

With another sigh he rested his head backwards against the wall with a small 'clang'. He seemed so at ease. Like their world wasn't being ripped at the seams. She figured it was another ruse. Regardless of how he acted, some of the seriousness of the situation must have reciprocated unto him.

"Friend, you seem well." Starfire voiced. She noticed everyone crane their ear. It seems it was on all their minds.

"As well as possible. A guy can only do so much." He managed a half-hearted grin. It was a wonder he could pull that off.

"Man, something's gotta be wrong with you." Cyborg said clutching at his temples. His shoulders were slumped. Stress screamed off of him.

"Don't you get what's going on?" She decided to add.

He didn't look at her as she addressed her.

"How couldn't I? People have been asking me that all day today."

She didn't know why, but she suddenly felt hot. She had always had a quick temper; it was just something she did. But he barely spoke three sentences and already she could feel her shoulders get tight. The room filled with a tapping. The mood dropped severely from the warmth that dominated it before. The tapping became louder as she tried to focus herself. Her foot had become a medium for her frustration. She redirected her sights from Beast Boy, and fell upon Star Fire. She was looking at her beseechingly. The tapping slowed and her shoulders slacked, even if by a slight proportion.

"Then why aren't you taking this serious?" Was her response.

He still hadn't removed his head from the wall, but now his eyes were closed. She noticed him taking a deep breath through his nose before he spoke. Was he trying to stay calm too?

"Who says I'm not? I'm dead serious."

"It sure doesn't show." Robin said.

"What? You want me to be all depressed and nervous?"

"No friend. It is just odd to us that you do not share the same gloom we share. Why is that?"

"What good does it do to be nervous? To be depressed?"

The rest were silent. They wanted to hear what he had to say. And she had to admit, she wanted to hear it too. He took the silence as his cue to continue.

"When you're nervous, what happens? You constantly second guess yourself, you hesitate and you make mistakes you wouldn't normally. Depression is nothing but a lack of self confidence and negative thinking. Negative thinking leads to nothing but negative results. So why bother with either of them? In moments like these, where uncertainty is laced into every corner, all you can do is react, respond and hope for the best. We're all friends' right? We have each other's backs, what one of us misses the other catches. And as long as we have that, what can stop us?"

All eyes were on him. His words were strong and its strength still echoed through the cramp room. Where was once gloom was now passion. He had given them passion, and even she was moved. However, she couldn't help but notice, he had made eye contact to everyone in the room, everyone but her. She lost a little bit of her vigor.

Before any other words could be exchanged a voice lacking any type of emotion cackled over the intercom.

"Titans, report to Hangar 35C in exactly 15 minutes. Directions will be provided upon exit of holding cell. Martian Manhunter out."

And as she and her friends stood to face what lay outside, she felt a pleasant warmth course through her that she hadn't felt in some time. She had to admit; recently she had been taking for granted the people she at some point in time cared so deeply for. Robin punched the button and the drab metallic door slid upwards. Turning his head he addressed his team.

"Let's Go."

And, for the first time in some weeks, she and the rest of her team moved as one mind.

So it was one at a time they filed out of the small room. She took her place behind Beast Boy. It was like stepping into an oven. On the outside he looked composed, an unnatural ease about his movements. But she could feel his anger, his frustration and dread. The heat of his emotions kissed at her skin. She knew most of it was directed to her, she didn't need to be told. Normally he walked with a slouch, one she had commented on more than once. But now he was upright, it made him seem taller, more mature. She wondered if it was such because of courage, determination, or if his back was just tense with passive hate.

She clutched her cloak around her body. An odd feeling crept through her. She felt guilty for what she had done, sure. But at the same time, it wasn't all her fault, right? He's to blame too. He could have gone about it in a different way, just like she could have. She was sure of it.

Cyborg crouched slightly to fit his large frame through the door, with no small effort. Now it was just her, Beast Boy, and the buzzing fluorescent lights. Her heart raced. She didn't know why, but her heart was racing like mad. She was conflicted. She wanted to talk to him, she knew they had a lot to talk about, but, she didn't even know where to start. He took his first step.

"Beas-"

"- Later…Raven."

That was the end of it. Without even a glance she had been dismissed. He was already gone. The heat of his spite left with him, leaving her unusually cold. The light to the room flickered, before finally shutting off. She sighed. She didn't want to keep the others waiting.

**(O.o)(X.x)(n.n)**

On the floor were lines of neon that stretched far off into the distance. He figured they must be the directions they were supposed to be given.

"This way."

His voice was even, commanding. It was such a lie. His insides felt like a bushel of maggots. He'd thought he'd puke sometime ago. But he couldn't. If he wasn't strong, then his team wouldn't be strong. So, even though he would have gladly liked to run away, hide and leave everything behind, he didn't. He marched the line with his team in tow, with no knowledge of where he was leading them. No knowledge of what lay ahead of them, and what consequences there would be.

A fragrance captured his senses. Starfire had moved up to walk to his side. Her odor had a calming effect on him. She didn't say anything; she wasn't even looking at him. It was like she knew just being there was what he needed, and he was grateful.

They rounded the corner and faced a large hangar door.

"It would appear we have arrived."

"Yeah, but how exactly do we-"

Abruptly the hangar doors slid open. It revealed nothing but complete darkness. He exchanged looks with his team. He steeled his nerve and took his first steps into the void. His team wordlessly followed him. Once all inside, the doors closed with a bang, far faster than they had opened.

His vision was consumed with black. But before he could adjust, a spotlight sliced through the shade, glorifying him and his team. They stood at the defensive, ready for anything. His eyes scanned every angle, every possible direction of attack. His team followed the same; he could feel their backs on his. They would not be caught off guard. However, regardless of their tenacity, silence was all that was met.

It was as he was considering his options another spotlight broke through the darkness, the Flash standing boisterously inside.

"Hello, boys and girls…" Before any questions could be asked, a blinding light filled the room. Robin squeezed his eyes shut and spots were dancing across his eyelids. A few moments pause and he was back to normal. His eyes widened at what he saw next; an obstacle course that put their own to shame.

Trap doors and drones of every variety adorned the floor. Sliding and collapsible walls, booby traps laid in copious amounts. He brought his attention back to his host. On his face was a smile that was as goofy as it was malicious. It made Robin nervous. He was taken aback at the overly dramatic bow the Flash directed to them and he was once again greeted by that mischievous grin.

"Welcome to the Rodeo."


	9. Note of Notes

I'm not dead.

See ya Soon.

Real Soon.

Cheers D


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